Issue 14 - Guest Cowboy
I am terrible at self-promotion, for a variety of reasons, including a general British suspicion of such things, healthy doses of impostor syndrome, and an attendant ever-present fear of failure.
For that reason, though, I’m determined to try to get better at it throughout the rest of this bizarro-year.
The Vague Mountain Chronicle was, in an oblique sort of a way, a first “toe in the water” in this direction. And as readers of it, I have a small favor to ask of you.
If you’re enjoying this newsletter, I’d be forever grateful if you could think through all of the folks you know and select just one person (I mean, you can do more, but let’s keep this simple) who you think might enjoy a weekly dose of me, and forward them a copy, or point them at the archive/subscription page.
Thanks! Also, if you’ve personally shaken yourself free of the shame-quagmire around putting yourself out there, tips and tricks are ever-welcome.
Project Updates
Having pivoted back towards focussing on my erstwhile Young Adult Sci-Fi novel, I’ve been spending a bit of time over the past week diving back into the murky world of literary agents, and researching promising avenues in that area. But I’ll talk more about that next issue, because I have a mountain of goodies to share with you today, and I also want to talk about a fast-upcoming event.
The Space Cowboys are a storied—some might say legendary—San Francisco DJ crew. From their Unimog art car to the ever-expanding annual Breakfast of Champions event, they’re a mainstay of the SF rave scene.
Since the pandemic broke, they’ve been running weekly online dance parties, and I’m excited and honored to share that I’ve been asked to kick the party off this coming Saturday, April 11th.
I’ll be on at 5:30pm PDT (8:30PM Eastern), spinning bouncy house and possibly a spot of gentler breaks. The stream will be on the Cowboys’ Twitch channel, https://twitch.tv/spacecowboysSF, and the event is a fundraiser benefiting Covid-19 relief efforts.
If nothing else, there’s a non-zero chance that I’ll trainwreck live on the internet, so you can always watch purely for the anticipation of schadenfreud.
A Thing of Beauty
Oh boy, this converted railway car cabin in Powys, Wales speaks to me. Park it somewhere with a drier climate, and I could probably live there quite happily for the rest of my days.
Ephemera
Coronaphemera
This XKCD takes a risk, looking at the pandemic from the point of view of viruses, but if anyone can pull it off, it’s Randal Munroe, and he does with style (the above is an excerpt–click for the full comic).
And for more of an emotional boot-to-the-gut, the distinctive art of Chris Ware makes for a powerful April cover of the New Yorker. The issue intro gives a little more backstory.
The Global treasure Sir Patrick Stewart is recording a Shakespeare sonnet per day on Instagram to pass the quarantine.
And the Getty started a whole trend of folks recreating paintings with whatever they have on hand, which is chef’s kiss (Collossal)
It’s looking increasingly likely that we’ll all need to learn to cut our own hair at home.
BusinessTown, the pitch-perfect Richard Scarry parody of late-stage capitalism is back with some biting pandemic commentary. Ouch.
The Atlantic has a fascinating look at some of the changes we’re seeing in the Natural World while we’re not doing all the things we normally do.
…and the story of the CDC’s iconic Coronavirus rendering is worth a bit of your time too (NYT)
Finally, stop expecting to be super-productive during an unprecedented global crisis. WaPo and the New York Times both agree on this.
Watchlist
A selection of videographic delights for your amusement!
Concatenation, 1:00 - a brilliant montage of clips.
Freeride Skiing at Home, 0:57 - (stop motion) one skier’s brilliant solution to resort closures.
The Life and Death of 3D, 17:32 - I’ve hated every iteration of 3D that the entertainment industry has tried, and I’m here for this takedown.
True Facts: The Wacky Giraffe - Just in case anyone reading this wasn’t aware that ZeFrank is back doing what he does best.
It’s a shame that Rick Astley became an internet punchline, because gosh darn the man can sing; his tribute cover of Bill Withers’s Ain’t No Sunshine is well worth 2;02 of your time..
(Withers passed away this week, in case you missed that)
Kanye’s antics can be tiresome, but hot damn he’s a talented artist. His student portfolio recently showed up on Antiques Roadshow… (3:59).
FOX IN SOX (5:44) - Dr Seuss rendered as rap over Dr Dre beats. Marvellous.
Spaaaaaace
Nasa’s officially bringing back their “worm” logo. They shouldn’t have ever gotten rid of it.
Physics Today has a lovely infographic of the many things we’ve learned via the Hubble Space Telescope.
Things to Make and Do
Turn yourself into an Old Master painting with AI Gahaku. The results aren’t always flattering, but they’re amusing.
Play the Quarantine edition of Hey Robot, the game of trying to make your AI assistant say a particular word.
Do Wizards have to worry about viruses? Probably. Either way, the Wizarding World juggernaut has a Harry Potter at Home collection to pass some of your isolation hours.
And while the Wizarding World has a tool to help you uncover your Hogwarts house, this statistically-based quiz will find the character you’re most like across dozens of different franchises.
Free, 624 Peculiar Prompts to keep you occupied at home.
Everything else
Not that anyone’s wearing shoes much right now, but these rainbow Vans SK8-HI MTE 2.0 DX are irresistably happy, with the bonus of looking a bit like Rainbow Brite’s shoes… see?
Need a color scheme for a project? Why not pick one with overly descriptive names?
And last but not least this week, JSTOR weighs in with a breathakingly click-baity headline which the article doesn’t quite answer; but it’s still interesting: Was Modern Art Really a CIA Psy-op?
Endnote
I have an excuse for being late this week! I was waiting to confirm details of the Space Cowboys gig, which is at 5:30pm PDT this coming Saturday, in case you already forgot.
If you’re enjoying reading this, feel free to let me know by replying to this email. Even better, tell your friends to sign up!