Hey y’all,
Here are 10 things I thought were worth sharing this week:
- A little pep talk from Laurie Anderson.
- I enjoyed Jan Swafford’s new introduction to classical music, Language of the Spirit.
- I revisited Jason Fried’s post, “Give it five minutes,” after being reminded of it in my advance copy of Alan Jacobs’ How To Think.
- The Atlantic reprinted Annie Dillard’s classic essay, “Total Eclipse,” also found in her recent collection, The Abundance. Reading it actually made me not want to experience a total eclipse at this particular point in my life. (I already feel darkness rushing towards me. See: Ross Andersen’s terrific piece, “The Eclipse as Dark Omen.”)
- Sarah Manguso, author of a recent favorite of mine, 300 Arguments, recommends singing in a choir, as does Brian Eno, who says it’s the key to a long life. Here’s Eno, Michael Stipe, and Stephen Colbert singing “Lean on Me.” (Bonus: Douglas Wolk on what makes Brian Eno’s early albums special.)
- Poem: “To ask the hard question is simple… / But the answer / Is hard and hard to remember.”
- Worth watching: I Called Him Morgan (streaming on Netflix), a documentary about jazz trumpeter Lee Morgan, his wife, and his untimely death. Here’s video of his trumpet solos and playing with Art Blakey.
- Ear candy: An online trove of 25,000 digitized 75RPM records.
- Austin’s new central library (photos here) is finally opening in October and I am pumped.
- How my son is helping me learn how to learn again.
Thanks for reading! If you like this newsletter, forward it to a friend, buy a book, or tweet me some love.
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xoxo,
Austin