Recently

I read Evicted, Blockchain Chicken Farm, and One Billion Americans in December, with Blockchain Chicken Farm as the clear standout. I’m partway through The Idea Factory, which also promises to be excellent, and even features some discussion of the world-famous “telephone pole farm” in my hometown.

Kyle E. Mitchell’s “Don’t Sign Blank Checks” is a really great nugget of crystallized wisdom. I also really liked Building Your Color Palette, which unpacks and demystifies one of the parts of design that has always been really hard for me. It does a great job of looking at the big patterns, finding some basic rules, and then giving good advice.

Listening

I haven’t found any big new albums recently, but I did remember this song, “All My Friends”, which was the first Chance the Rapper verse that hooked me. There’s a live version too, which is pretty good. It does bittersweet well, and those silly-or-deep lines like “reinvent the wheel just to fall asleep at it” are like the rap equivalent of golden age of Modest Mouse. Also from 2015, Chance’s verse on Baby Blue has similar energy - “I hope you never get off Fridays, and you work at a Fridays, that’s always busy on Fridays”.

I’ve been watching a third as much TV as your average American, which is way too much TV. Letterkenny is my recommendation, hattip Lyzi Diamond. Frost/Nixon was pretty good too.

2020: a year in review

No!

2021: Planning for success

I had few goals in 2020. As soon as the coronavirus hit, I adjusted my Strava goal down to 200 miles - a sprained ankle that took months to heal didn’t help either. Had no reading goal, but I did aim to achieve a 1400 rating in chess, and did!

Same thing for 2021: no big goals. I’m excited for a new presidential administration, a vaccine, and a few new leaves that are growing on my ficus. It keeps growing them if I spritz it daily.