Welcome to week 22 of Internet of Literal Things. The weird, wacky, wonderful, and wild of the world wide web seems to be several-too-many “w’s” and a perfect place for me to start. I’m Sara Nason, a fellow person on the internet, who happens to have many hours on hand to read random articles that are tucked into multiple crevices in my phone.
I just finished reading this book I was gifted for my birthday titled, “Your Art Will Save Your Life,” by Beth Pickens. It’s far too brilliant to distill into one sentence, so my first recap is: even if you don’t consider yourself a daily, practicing artist, buy this book. Read it. Commit its messages to memory. My immediate action out of completing the last page of the book is applying for a small studio at a local artist community, a few miles from my village. Here’s the thing I’m learning: apply, even if you don’t get it. There are plenty of ideas and projects that receive funding that may be more or less brilliant than what you’re working on… I kept seeing a quote this week that said something to the effect of “I’ve failed more times than you’ve even tried.” So, keep failing, my friends.
So, strangers of the internet, here we go. keep failing for the Internet of Literal Things #22.
(While we’re at it, become a paying subscriber for $5 a month to support all of the links that bring this W-focused newsletter your way every Sunday.)
What I’m Reading
As Phoenix heats up, the night comes alive (NY Times)
Welcome to the competitive world of wiffle ball (The Ringer)
Extreme climate change has arrived in the US (The Washington Post)
Our children have my last name. No, my husband doesn’t mind. (Glamour)
Why are we all paying a tax to credit card companies (The Week)
Welcome to Greenbriar, the Governor-owned luxury resort filled with conflicts of interest (ProPublica)
Thousands of protestors storm Hong Kong airport, shutting down flights (NPR)
Chase Bank forgiving all debt owed by its Canadian credit card customers (CBC)
In Paris’s suburbs, a bike trail plan carries a big promise (CityLab)
Three years of misery inside Google, the happiest company in tech (WIRED)
Our galaxy’s black hole suddenly lit up and nobody knows why (VICE)
Our democracy’s founding ideals were false when they were written. Black Americans have fought to make them true. (NY Times)
Mediation talks between US Women’s team and US Soccer break down (NY Times)
Amazon uses a Twitter army of employees to fight criticism of warehouses (NY Times)
—> (read this Twitter thread where it becomes very clear what’s going on with Amazon’s warehouse employees and their corporate talking points)
And then there’s this tweet:
What I’m Visually Experiencing
Planet or Plastic? Choose your planet. Take your pledge. (National Geographic)
Quiz: Let us predict whether you’re a Democrat or a Republican (NY Times)
The gerrymandered font (kottke.org)
What the early days of digital were like (YouTube)
What I’m Listening To
Bon Iver’s new album: i,i (Spotify)
(—> Take it with a grain of salt though)
🏆 A Photo of An #UglyDogs Related Thing On The Internet 🥇
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