Chris Sippel (1956–2017)
I wish that I’d known him better, and for more than a handful of his sixty-one years.
“Don’t fucking kill yourself”
A YouTube video with practical advice.
Steven Heller on humility
“When you start out, there are all sorts of things you have to learn, and humility is one of them.”
Gleanings from Maira Kalman
Three passages from The Principles of Uncertainty.
The Dutch Reach
Open the car door with the far hand — and check for cyclists.
Words from Edward G. Robinson
“To work, to create, to grow, and to give of yourself: that is one of the chief aims in life. To have experienced it once: that is a great experience. To do it a hundred and one times, well, that’s really a small miracle.”
Ten bits and a jar
John Scalzi’s ten bits of advice for getting work done in these times, and Elaine’s idea for a jar of good things.
Alain de Botton and Mark Trail
Not perfect synchronicity, but pretty good.
Why I am not a tree trimmer
I have a fear of heights, for one thing. It’s been with me from childhood. No bucket trucks for me.
From an old notebook
Eleanor Roosevelt, as quoted by the tenor saxophonist David Murray.
ZNH
Floridians, be safe.
A Neuman tattoo
“It goes with me everywhere.”
Antigone in Ferguson
Whatever the fate of Sophocles and other representatives of “western civ” in academia, their work remains perpetually relevant to human suffering and human endeavor.
Word of the day: eclogue
Shepherds in eclogues don’t clear much brush. They talk and sing — much more fun.
Word of the Day: loll
Had I known about today’s word earlier in the day, I perhaps wouldn’t have been as willing to spend much of the day clearing brush from the edge of our property (with Elaine).
Cargo-shorts debate
From The Wall Street Journal: “Relationships around the country are being tested by cargo shorts, loosely cut shorts with large pockets sewn onto the sides. Men who love them say they’re comfortable and practical for summer. Detractors say they’ve been out of style for years, deriding them as bulky, uncool and just flat-out ugly.”
“We’re all here”
Tony Bennett remembers words of wisdom from Ella Fitzgerald.
Two Guys
A price sticker, thirty-six years old.
Work advice
From Roger Rosenblatt.
“Another”
“I dread hearing the word ‘another.’”
An inefficient nurse
A New Yorker protrait of a hospice nurse.
If my life were a Beverly Cleary novel
“Why would anyone drink coffee with breakfast when he could have a nice hot cup of tea instead?”
Bill Cunningham (1929–2016)
“Money’s the cheapest thing. Liberty and freedom is the most expensive.”
Good advice
“I like to tell people that if you wait until you’re completely qualified for something, maybe it’s too late.”
HGSE Dean’s speech at Open Culture
Five questions from James E. Ryan
From Fred Rogers
“Look for the helpers.”
Orlando
“Who are we as a country?”
Things I learned on my summer vacation
Lots of things.
Lives and writings
From Joseph Joubert.
Things to do in Los Angeles
An incomplete list.