Friday, December 18, 2015

Weekend Reading: The Nothing's Going to Slow Me Down Edition

I am in a straight up great mood.

I went to my kids' holiday show this afternoon, and it was great. Petunia (and the other kindergartners) danced to the Spanish version of Jingle Bell Rock and their dance involved a twist move that was ridiculously cute. Pumpkin (and the other third graders) danced to this song:



And it was equally awesome, although less heart-explodingly cute.

On top of that, I've had a really good work week. I'm actually going to get everything on my to do list done, which includes some solid planning that makes me feel less overwhelmed. I don't mind having a huge to do list, I just need it organized and prioritized so that I know what I need to be working on RIGHT NOW, and by Monday, I'll have that. I might even have it before the end of today. We'll see.

Also, I finally found the last two stories I need for my next Annorlunda Books Taster Flight, I signed a contract with the author of another book that I'll be releasing next year, and I got a query from another author. So I'm feeling pretty confident that I'll be able to make my goal of releasing six new books next year. I might even exceed it, which would be wonderful.

I picked the first conference I want to attend next year- I'm going to Bindercon in LA in March! Details to be worked out, but early bird tickets have been purchased. I'd also love to find a conference to which I might submit a talk proposal. I'd like to talk about project management and why it rules. Or something like that. If you have any ideas, let me know.

Finally, I just booked a workshop that I'll deliver in January. Since I really enjoy giving classes and workshops, that makes me happy. The fact that I'll be paid to do this makes me even happier.

So, all in all, a great week. Ain't nothing going to break my stride, nothing's going to slow me down...

Oh yeah, I've got another video for you. Check out the backup dancers on this one...



Anyway. On to the links.

It seems that people are getting evicted from their rent controlled apartments so that the landlords can rent them out on AirBnB instead. Yikes. We need to figure out some rules for this "sharing economy" or they are going to be written by well off young men whose main qualification is the ability to write code.

Do you remember the Rebecca Solnit essay I shared awhile back about Esquire's list of books every man should read? Well, you probably won't be surprised that some men didn't like her essay, so she's back with a follow up... Men Explain Lolita to Me.

After you read that, go read Rebecca Traister's excellent piece about the death throes of white male power.

Like her, I don't take it for granted that we're going to get the "right" result. I worry about the backlash from the guys who have been told all their life that they were supposed to be at the top of the heap.

I also think this is the flipside of the Josh Marshall piece I shared awhile back about the rising death rates among white people.

I think we need to pay attention to this, and think strategically about it- but also engage our empathy. I am still struggling to get my head around what I think about our changing times, but I know that times when the rules are changing are inherently a bit dangerous, and I know that I believe that we do better as people when we can be empathetic to what other people are experiencing- even people who we think have nothing much to complain about.

I guess I think we need to charge ahead towards the better world we want to build, but that we'll get there faster and with less suffering if we can find a way to help the people who were on the top of the heap in the old world find their footing in the new world.

Anyhow, that wasn't very many links and a couple of them are ones I have shared before, but that's what has been on my mind this week.

Some other things I found:

I'm really enjoying the World in Words podcast, and this episode about Lebanon was particularly good. Make sure you listen to the part about "kiss me again!"

I was pleasantly surprised to find that reading Mark Bittman's views on food didn't make me want to scream. I really like his points about genetic engineering and sugar. I need to think more about what he says. I'm not sure I agree with everything, but the fact that he seems to understand the science on these two points makes me more willing to consider the rest of what he says. Also, I really like his recipes, so I'm glad I can keep making them without thinking "too bad he's a wacko."

This research on the link between variations in the bitter receptor and the ability to recognize sweet taste is interesting.

Here's your hilarious animal gif of the week:




I doubt I'll have links for you next Friday, what with it being Christmas and all. But since I kicked butt on the work front this week, maybe I'll allow myself some time to write some other posts here. We'll see. One of the hardest parts about being my own boss is reminding myself to be a good boss.

Happy weekend, everyone!

3 comments:

  1. I've never read anything unreasonable from Mark Bittman about food policy and I've read several of his books. What have you read that you disagree with?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Nothing! I just unreasonably had him lumped in with "NYT writers who make me grumpy." The only things I've read from him previously are recipes.

      Delete
    2. I always get him confused with Michael Pollan, for some reason. Both M names that end in -an, I guess?

      Delete

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