One piece of business before we get started: If youâre coming to the Texas Book Festival this weekend, the time and the place of my talk has changed! Iâll be speaking at noon Sunday, Nov. 6 in Capitol Extension Room E2.036. Details here.
Last weekend I did something I havenât done in about two and a half years: I got on a plane! I flew to Philadelphia then drove out to Lancaster, PA to speak to a wonderful bunch of arts educators and get a much-needed dose of real fall weather.
My 10 things worth sharing this week are almost exclusively from my trip:
Upon landing in PHL, I had to ask a bunch of Phillies fans to explain why they were singing a Robyn song. Hereâs the story of how âDancing on my Ownâ became their playoff anthem.
I read the entirety of Andrew Sean Greerâs novel Less Is Lost on the plane and in the hotel room before I fell asleep. A good and worthy sequel, but if you havenât read Less, start there!
An album I listen to whenever I canât sleep or the hotel is too noisy is My Bloody Valentineâs Loveless. Saturday morning after walking for coffee, I popped into the Barnes and Noble in Rittenhouse Square and they actually had Mike McGonigalâs 33 1/3 book on the album. I read that on the flight back. (In another magic Philly moment, I shared an elevator with John Fetterman?!? He is very tall and not someone who looks like he wants to be bothered at 8AM in a hotel elevator.)
The Philadelphia Museum of Art is one of my favorite museums, and the Matisse in the 1930s show did not disappoint, but even more delightful was the juxtaposition of the Macho Men exhibit of prints next door. (It reminded me of the time I went to see the Hilma af Klint show at the Guggenheim and they had Robert Mapplethorpe photos up in an offshoot.) But best of all was this CĂ©zanne I fell in love with. The whole drive through eastern Pennsylvania I wondered how CĂ©zanne wouldâve handled the hills.
Ear candy: I got a great tip to leave the city on Kelly Drive, just north of the museum. The thing that sent the beautiful drive to Lancaster over the top was listening to this 2-hour radio show of Iggy Pop chatting with Brian Eno. (I love the BBC Sounds app. Check out this Sounds Iconic series of interviews.)
Lancaster is a cool place. Highlights: Shoofly pie and the Central Market. Sunday I drove to Longwood Gardens, which was just stunning. I couldâve spent all day there. I ended the trip on a high note a few miles down the road when I stopped at the Brandywine Museum of Art and discovered they had my books on sale. Impromptu book signing!
After a brief hiatus, Iâve fallen back in love with plain olâ Paper Mate Flair felt tip pens. (Just donât put your notebook through the washing machine â theyâre not waterproof!)
Social media companies are coming âfor every second of your life.â
RIP New Yorker cartoonist George Booth. RIP writer Julie Powell.
Ray Bradburyâs 1000-night plan for being more creative.
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xoxo,
Austin
PS. Enjoy this photo of my kidsâ halloween costumes:
Ahhh, how did I miss you were coming to Lancaster! I'm glad you enjoyed it. It really is a magical and weird and rich place.
In the same elevator as John Fetterman! Nice.
That Iggy show sounds great, I'll have to give it a listen. What a pairing with a two lifetimes of incredible experiences. I recently watch a clip of Iggy on David Letterman, talking about how he started jumping into the crowd, among other things (https://youtu.be/PqDC7F4dBsM). An absolute delight.
"Less" is high on my tbr list right now. But first I'm going to read Kid Congo Power's memoir!