The method

10 things worth sharing this week

Hey y’all,

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

1. “One of the symptoms of an approaching nervous breakdown is the belief that one's work is terribly important.” How to get some cosmic perspective. (My favorite comment: “This post inspired me put down my phone and immediately go for a walk with my dog.”)
   
   

2. “Get out now. Not just outside, but beyond the trap of the programmed electronic age so gently closing around so many people at the end of our century. Go outside, move deliberately, then relax, slow down, look around…” That’s the beginning of John Stilgoe’s book Outside Lies Magic. (Stilgoe also wrote the preface for the abridged edition of Thoreau’s journals that I love. Both were big influences on my book Keep Going.) Here’s a great 60 Minutes segment from 2003 where Stilgoe walks Steve Kroft around, talking about education and teaching him to look closely at advertising and the built environment. “Most people, when they learn to read, stop looking around…” (I feel like my friends Sara and Deb and Rob will love this if they haven’t already seen it. Thanks to Oliver for recommending Stilgoe many years ago!)
   
   

3. “Chris was extraordinary in that, honest to God, he would wake up every morning almost like how kids wake up in the morning and they’ve had dreams.” Chris Burden’s impossible artworks.
   

   

   Pre-order before June 2 to get the goods

4. A few nights ago, Hrishikesh Hirway and I were talking about “The Gulp” that Jonathan Lethem writes about in The Ecstasy of Influence: the time in between when you finish something and its release date, the “interlude where the [thing] has quit belonging to you but doesn’t belong to anyone else yet.” Hrishi’s gulp is over today: his new album is out now!
   
   

5. Bach Artillerie is Deerhoof drummer Greg Saunier and Curt Sydnor playing the Goldberg canons of Bach. Here’s a video of them jamming. Love it.
   
   

6. I can’t stop playing Nine Inch Noize. I watched both weekends of their Coachella performances and I can’t get enough. Blasting it at top volume in the studio like electro-shock therapy.
   
   

7. Big ole book: I’m about 250 pages (1/4) into The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas. (“The name is Dumas!”) From The Writer’s Almanac: “[Dumas] started writing fiction at a time when publishers used fiction to sell newspapers. When his first novel appeared in a newspaper, it generated 5,000 new subscriptions. Dumas didn't care much about characterization or historical accuracy or even plausibility; he just wanted to tell an exciting story. Whenever he made money, he spent it lavishly and then some, the result being that he was often feverishly writing a new book to keep ahead of his creditors.”
   
   

8. A close look at security envelope patterns and some collages made from them.
   
   

9. Some 🦉 news from Austin, Texas: Athena’s surviving owlet was rescued by the fine folks at Austin Wildlife Rescue. (Back in 2023, when we had owl babies in our backyard, Meghan and I got to meet a screech owl at AWR.)
   
   

10. I continue to be delighted by seeing photos of what people have done with their pre-order goodies for Don’t Call It Art:

    

    Thanks to ajruck and Candace.westbyart on Instagram!

    Here’s a video I made of how to fold the zines made of bonus material and extra book chapters:

Thanks for reading. This hand-rolled publication is made possible thanks to the kindness of readers like you. The best way you can support my work right now is to pre-order the new book!

xoxo,

Austin