Austin Kleon

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Failing in both directions

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Failing in both directions

10 things worth sharing this week

Apr 28, 2023
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Hey y’all,

Here are 10 other things I thought were worth sharing this week:

  1. So much of my reading and thinking lately has been about intelligence that is rooted in the body, so I enjoyed this bit from William Burroughs on how to have an out-of-the-body experience.

  2. For the past month or so, I’ve found a weekly review to be helpful for keeping track of where I’ve been and what I want to do next. Some things I might add based on your helpful comments: a big envelope marked INBOX for things I need to sort through later and swiping through the photos on my phone.

  3. A lesson from Inside Taco Bell’s Innovation Kitchen: “You can change either the taste or the form… but you can’t change the taste and the form.” (From The Onion: “Taco Bell’s Five Ingredients Combined in Totally New Way.”)

  4. Kurt Cobain’s spiral notebooks, from Jillian Hess’s very cool Noted newsletter. Also Leonard Cohen’s notebooks. (And I know I won’t shut up about Charles Portis, but this look at his notes and papers is terrific.)

  5. Music: This Tiny Desk concert with the Bill Orcutt Guitar Quartet seems like an instant classic. An interview with ambient musician Tim Hecker. Hanif Abdurraqib on what Little Richard deserved and the new documentary about him, I Am Everything. (Watch him live in Paris in 1966.) Willie Nelson’s amazing grace. (He’s about to celebrate his 90th birthday! KUTX has wall-to-wall Willie all weekend.) RIP singer, actor, and activist Harry Belafonte. (“That’s only the top.”)

  6. Space Elevator! (My son and I had fun scrolling through all of Neal.Fun’s projects.)

  7. The joy of rolling on the streets of Austin.

  8. “We must live life forward and attempt to make sense of it backward. So we fail in both directions.”

  9. Our owlets are getting their feathers!


  10. People like seeing the strings attached.

Thanks for reading. This newsletter is a completely reader-supported publication. If you love it and want to support my work, the best ways are to buy my books, hire me to speak, or become a paid subscriber:

xoxo,

Austin

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Jillian Hess
Writes Noted
Apr 28Liked by Austin Kleon

Every week, I read your "10 Things Worth Sharing" without fail. So it was very, very cool to see my name on your list!

Also-I'm going to have to check out Leonard Cohen's and Charles Portis's notes!

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tania
Writes ever wonder why?
Apr 28Liked by Austin Kleon

"show me the seams. let me see where things come from." can also be applied to fabric and textile art - seams are a space that divides and brings together - literally and figuratively - there is so much to explore in those few words and i appreciate the upending of the phrase "show me the money" ;) as corny as this is, your newsletter inspires me every friday to keep going!

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