Today I’m reflecting on You Seem Pretty Sad for a Girl So In Love by Olivia Rodrigo. (This is part of my Top 10 albums listening project, rooted in a snapshot of September 2026’s chart. Catch up with #1 and #2) I really expected to hate this, based on a quick listen to the intros… Continue reading #3 Album
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#2 Album
Today I’m listening to Dandelion by Ella Langley. (If you missed it, yesterday was Don’t Look Down by Rod Wave) First up: it’s country! I’m not really a huge country fan but I’m open. I was on alert for ‘this is so not for me’ vibes when I saw the notes on the album saying… Continue reading #2 Album
#1 Album
I’m regularly tempted by YouTube videos on the theme of “First Time Hearing…” where someone listens to a classic song for the first time and goes wide-eyed at the fact that, I don’t know, Dolly Parton on Phil Collins or The Beastie Boys had some skills. Yesterday I watched two: My amazement that these people… Continue reading #1 Album
Regulate AI Companies, Now
I read an article this morning that broke down an Anthropic (owners of the Claude AI engine) report on why their agents weren’t returning accurate information even when the right answers were in the datasets it was reading. Let me say that again: Anthropic has developed, released, charged for, and heavily promoted ‘agentic AI’…and it… Continue reading Regulate AI Companies, Now
Who Did Americans Fight In The War of Independence?
Hey US-type Americans, I have a question: Who were you fighting in 1776? The British? The English? Who? It’s Not Your Fault You’re Confused I’ve spend a LOT of this year reading newly-published books and articles, and listening to podcasts and talks around the topic of the American Revolution/War of Independence. As an immigrant to… Continue reading Who Did Americans Fight In The War of Independence?
A Republic, If You Can Keep It
250 years ago a choice was made. This was not inevitable. Nor was the country that came after it. And choices have continued to be made. What Comes Next? In the musical Hamilton, when George III realizes he’s lost the colonies, he switches from asserting ‘you’ll be back’ to asking “What comes next?…Do you know… Continue reading A Republic, If You Can Keep It
Thinking about Death
Yesterday was the anniversary of the day my Dad left us. This week, my dear friend Marta’s father joined him in the great whatever. A week or so ago, a friend my age finally stopped being able to outrun the chronic illness that should have prevented him doing the many remarkable things he did with… Continue reading Thinking about Death
Storytelling without the story
I’ve been sending you a lot of mail about summits recently, so today I wanted to remind you of why you’re here: because you know there’s something in this storytelling-for-sales lark, if you could just figure out how to do it. So here’s a technique that you can try this week, that doesn’t include a specific story, but achieves the some of the same things. (Stay tuned, after the example, for my challenge to you). The Non-Story Storytelling Email This week my friend and fellow author, Fallon…
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I’m Published in ‘Analog’
I was going to start this by saying, “‘I never thought I’d write those words”, but the truth is, of course I always hoped to be published in such a prestigious journal. It’s just not polite to admit your ambitions. It also doesn’t take away my gob-smacked-ness that it actually happened. It’s wonderful. It’s thrilling.… Continue reading I’m Published in ‘Analog’