Surprise in the Mail

April 21, 2005

Of course, we get a lot of junk as well. Some of it goes straight in the recycling bin. Save the Manatee people, just stop please. It's clear that a lot of folks who send us mail haven't even looked at a copy of Hyphen. If they did, they'd realize they shouldn't have bothered.

And then, once in a blue moon, we get something really cool. The latest batch of mail contained an envelope that had been spray painted. Always a good sign. Someone handy enough with a spray can? Gotta be something good inside.

And there was.

Seems Jeff Chang has asked artist Mike Stern and his clothing company Origin to make t-shirts based on ideas in Jeff’s book about the hip-hop generation, Can’t Stop Won’t Stop. That’s me in the photo trying on the t-shirt that was sent over. Stern made three limited-edition designs. (I like this one the best, though. How did they know to send this one?) There's countless people out there making t-shirts, but this one, I would actually wear. Check out the other designs here.

Contributor: 

Melissa Hung

Founding Editor

Melissa Hung is the founding editor of Hyphen. She was the editor in chief for the magazine's first five years and went on to serve in many other leadership roles on the staff and board for more than a decade. She is a writer and freelance journalist. Her essays and reported stories have appeared in NPR, Vogue, Pacific Standard, Longreads, and Catapult, among others. She grew up in Texas, the eldest child of immigrants. Find her on Twitter and Instagram.