OMM (On My Mind)
~ April 2023 #2: Double Issue ~
::: Recommended Podcasts Episodes :::
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Intelligence Squared – Atheism is the New Fundamentalism
This episode is from 2009 and reveals quite a bit about what has changed in society and what has not.
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I recommend pairing the abovementioned Intelligence Squared conversation with this exceptional episode of The Grey Area – A philosopher takes on religious life. A thoughtful and intimate conversation between Sean Illing and Zen Hitz.
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NPR’s Code Switch – Real self-care takes real systemic change
Dr. Poojah Lakshmin is the real deal.
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::: Music :::
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If you haven’t listened yet, check out: boygenius - The Record
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Very much non-comprehensive charts of “sad artists” with “sad lyrics”.
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Hot Take: The new Wednesday album “Rat Saw God” that Pitchfork is raving about is… not good.
Less heated take: If I was 14-16yo, back in the day, I may have seen something here, sure. There’s way better music available these days and streaming gives you an all-access pass.
But hey, you don’t have to listen to me… I’m over 30, I like a lot of pop music now, and don’t really care about having good taste. Like what you like.
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::: Literary & Arts Community News :::
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Ireland Has Been Giving Creative Workers $1,400 a Month in an Economic Experiment That Will Soon Shape National Policy
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Women rule the world. Or, at least, the book biz. But why is this not the case across all creative areas?
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::: Serious Business in the World of Birding :::
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Should stats be the deciding factor in State Birds?
If you live in these states, do you see these birds??
Please do share!
I lived in West Virginia for 5 years and to the best of my knowledge never saw a Cerulean Warbler…and clearly I missed out!
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::: Open-Ended :::
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I hear plenty from one side of the political spectrum… about what they are pissed about (or say they are pissed about) concerning materials in K-12 textbooks. I don’t hear much from the left/progressive camps about what is being included or excluded. Without kids, hard to know. I’ve been wondering what it getting said about recent history, recent presidencies, 9/11 and the wars that followed. It’s hard to imagine teaching in a pandemic and also teaching material that is ongoing. And also teaching material that students might say “My Dad says otherwise” (Dad parroting Fox News etc) or “I saw something different on TikTok” (or Twitter etc). I see walls and pitfalls at every turn. How best then to use classroom time? I hear we’re moving away from the old ways of homework meaning that much of that work is done now in the classroom and students can look at lectures (read: Pre-recorded lectures, YouTube videos, TedTalks (?)) at home. This makes sense. Use the classroom, where a room of student peers have come together for active discussion. Try to make a difference in that small space in that small length of classroom time. Now, then, the great questions of what is most important for young minds to hear?
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::: In Other News… :::
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Netflix and grieve: Inside the digital afterlife of streaming profiles
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Italy temporarily banned ChatGPT.
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A little bit of sky love.
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Advice from Centenarians.
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“It’s a little girl’s goat, not Pablo Escobar.”
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The Link Between Entrepreneurship and Mental Health Conditions
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The Moon might turn out to be a source of a significant amount of water. I forget, did we already get into this? #MoonWater
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NY Times newsletter Op-Ed on concerns about The Next Pandemic (I know, too soon)
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A lil bit of generational disparity in who leads countries.
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This was the first article I saw about #DavidGate before it blew up.
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One of the many many looks into what may or may not happen with AI.
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A good piece on the bold attempt to remake Resident Evil 4… which, as someone who hasn’t played video games since approximately that era…remains convinced is one of the GOATs.
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A look into the Seed Vault.
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Sources indicate this may be the most comfortable hoodie of all time. It’s $50.
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Seth Godin takes a crack at another way to manage the endless barrage of emails.
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It’s not all glory if you’ve found yourself reaching for the Stoics.
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This is not about fat shaming, this is about health
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The Happiest Colleges In The US, Based On Students' Selfies
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This one is for the sneakerheads.
How would Keith feel? Debatable.
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So I just learned about MSCHF.
They’ve successfully pulled off some antics in the art world. Fake Warhol, anyone?
Oh wait, just kidding. I mean who doesn’t remember the Satan Shoes?
Anyways… now they’re trying to doing your taxes sexy.
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Rewilding to protect the future of our environment
“Fortunately, we have the technology to scrub CO2 from the atmosphere,” Schmitz said.“ “It’s called nature.”
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Where does our food come from?
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Summer water battle, anyone? Certainly, a safer alternative to paintball.
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Best films of the 21st Century? Who knows. All I can say is that of those I’ve seen none stick out as terrible selections.
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This backstory about Sweetgreen is… kinda sweet?
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Make use of Chatbots or get left in the dust.
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Congress is even older than usual.
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SIG Sauer P320 pistols are taking shots on their own.
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The Cali poppy superbloom
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People are painting their lawns…because…I don’t know go watch King of the Hill.
But in all seriousness, let’s move away from lawns. They are dumb and terrible for the environment.
What is this 1954?
(PS – while you’re doing away with your lawn, ditch your leaf blower. Those things pretty much turn everyday folks into eco-terrorists.)
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In other news…
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“In New York, designing a fancy restaurant to be quiet was a sign of luxury, now, restaurant designers seek to signal scarcity by making restaurants noisy.” – Seth Godin
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Phantom takes a curtain… finally? IDK… I mean… I did see it on Broadway years ago. Limited memory except for the chandelier thing. Apparently 14,000 performances? That is… impressive.
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Otter triplets. Ok, sure.
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Wonderful story about acts of being open and kind.
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The evolution of storytelling. In this case a very well-known text.
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“Extreme Athlete” is a term and it’s not about the X-Games. Or, at least, not anyone I guess. Haven’t done a deep dive but the term is… well, maybe it implies what side of Crossfit you fall on.
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We occasionally (sickeningly too often) put the wrong person to death… so… bearing that in mind… this.
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Whoa… unexpected strong stance and powerful words from a company that is simply known for providing high quality spices.
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In care you’d like to live/retire in a beach town.
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Time’s 100 Most Influential People of 2023
Remember: This list isn’t about being good so much as it is about being talked about
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Who you gonna call?
Well, apparently, a fake Sherlock Holmes may turn up on the scene.
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A lil science on HIIT workouts
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Yet another personality breakdown… in this case, the case for “6 Core Personality Types”
I think I’m an Omega Delta Sigma … oh wait, are we not supposed to combine?
Anyways, who wants to make Greek life shirts for this?
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Seth Godin and dealing with food waste.
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Not everyone wants to make it to 100. Why not? Well, for one thing, have you noticed the pace of technology? Yeesh… the world will be unrecognizable. Also, most likely, you will have survived everyone near and dear to you. Watching everyone you love die is probably not high on your bucket list.
Okinawa is a “Blue Zone” meaning people actually do tend to live quite a long time there. Doesn’t mean being a centenarian has to be your personal game plan.
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Good piece on The Internet & Digital Citizenry.
As a bonus, the author of this article evokes W.S. Merwin’s poem ‘Convenience’ – in what is truly an impressively on point reference.
Encourage checking out what Tristan Harris is up to with the Centre for Humane Technology.
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Rideshare continues into the darkness.
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TW: suicide
Another example of our healthcare system failing those in the most danger.
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Positive News!?
Cambridge student designs plastic windows for Ukraine homes
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Will we ever tire of cake fails? That was a rhetorical question.
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NICU Nurse In Indiana Adopts Teen Mom With Triplets
A very sweet story of challenges on challenges on challenges.
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Disturbing story about plastic waste… and how we are creating (if I understand correctly) a new layer of Earth’s surface…It’s like that time in a tree’s life when one of the rings becomes made of plastic just like in the good ol’ days…
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Survey: 1 in 6 Americans have witnessed a shooting
When are we going to wake up?
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The “Network Effect” and why it’s hard to jump social media platforms
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TW: problematic or monstrous artists... good article
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Recently stayed at a hotel where students were getting to see what they would otherwise not be exposed to because of a program called WorldStrides. Nice, right?
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What is “Middle Class” in America in 2023?
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“Therapy Speak” and relationship issues.
This is important. We’re in a phase now, I suspect. I think we’ll move away from it. It’s not sustainable. It’s too robotic and fake to engage with people the way many of us have for a number of years now. There’s only so much hiding we can do from real, serious conversations.
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Quotes from Bourdain on travel
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