I have a new story up on the Atlantic today about the mainstreaming of the running tutu. This topic had been on my mind for a few years and it was interesting to find different threads to explain the phenomenon--the rise of women in running, Disney, the intersection of technology and nonprofit, and some good old-fashioned internet shaming.  

Not every question I have has an interesting story behind it. There is something both disappointing and satisfying when you ask a question and the answer is annoyingly straightforward.

Here are a few I researched and then realized the answer can be summed up in a few words, instead of a feature length article:

• What is a bonbon and how did it come to be associated with lazy housewives? (A: It's a chocolate, and the answer is probably Peggy Bundy from  Married with Children.)  
  
  
• Why are there so few gay male standup comics compared to lesbian ones?
  (A: Homophobia.)
  
  
• Why do we forget the most difficult parts of having babies raising children? (A: Because of continuation of the species. I didn't even research this, I just know anytime there is a Why do we let children brainwash us? story the answer is most likely "So we don't go extinct/die alone.")