Preaching to the choir

10 things worth sharing this week

Hey y’all,

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

1. Maybe because I grew up singing in the church choir, I think a lot about that phrase, “Preaching to the choir.”

   
   

2. My audiobook trilogy is currently on sale through Apple: all 3 books for $5!
   
   

3. I spent some time this week re-reading the work of Ursula Franklin. She’s been a big influence on my thinking about silence, democracy, and technology, especially her classic, The Real World of Technology. If you like that book, check out The Ursula Franklin Reader. She had so much to say about the mess we’re in. (I have been meaning to work my way through the CBC Massey Lectures archive where you can listen to Franklin’s original lectures.)
   
   

4. Literary supercut: Tom Comitta’s The Nature Book is in bookstores now. It’s a collage “novel” stitched together with “writing about the natural world from three hundred works of fiction.” 
   
   

5. Big news from my pal Wendy MacNaughton: DrawTogether is bringing art and social emotional learning to classrooms for free.
   
   

6. As I mentioned last week, I love SXSW even in the years I don’t have a badge — all the locals clear out so my neighborhood gets really quiet and the world (okay, a tiny portion of it) flies to Austin, so I get to see a lot of my friends. Kevin Kelly came by my studio for a visit and a bike ride. There are so many gems in his forthcoming book, Excellent Advice for Living: Wisdom I Wish I'd Known Earlier. I also got ramen with Maria Konnikova. I can’t wait to read her next book — if you haven’t, you should catch up on The Confidence Game and The Biggest Bluff so you’re ready. (On a separate note: I am blessed with really cool friends.)
   
   

7. From my archives: If you, like me, are having trouble adjusting to being back in the world again, I suggest some conversational shortcuts. (It’s also been 3 years since #StayHomeMakeZines, and 5 years since I wrote about The Ides of March, Thoreau, and feeling worthy of your life.)
   
   

8. A big hit on pizza night with the kids: We loved the animation in WolfWalkers, so we’re also queuing up The Secret of Kells and Song of the Sea.
   
   

9. The Talking Heads’ Stop Making Sense (one of my favorite concert films, directed by Jonathan Demme) is being restored and re-released, and A24 announced with this adorable video. (My other favorite concert films, off the top of my head: Depeche Mode 101 and The Last Waltz.)

   
   

10. You have to really love your idea.

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xoxo,

Austin