march

And February is already gone. I have one crochet pattern test to show for my work, and a new year of magazines to look forward to. Vogue and Real Simple both have new editors who are tasked with giving their respective magazines a refresh. I’ve never pretended to be any kind of fashion expert, but I’m not sure if the new editor is the person to pull Vogue from its irrelevancy. Solely based on her debut letter from the editor. Without any fanfare to speak of, I do expect to be surprised by Real Simple in their upcoming issues. Already the advice page is greatly improved. Meanwhile, I'm watching 70s movies with my partner about the 24hour news cycle.

this issue includes..

updates | spotlight | thoughts on time | i love magazines

updates

I've lived in my first house for half a year now. Woohoo! Suddenly I want to spend every Sunday at Lowe's or in the garden or imagining different paint colors on the walls. Home-ownership is new to me and something I didn't think I could reasonably have with (gestures vaguely at the state of the world) all this going on. Something I haven't said properly is this: It's difficult to acknowledge the injustices of the world and yet continue to seek joy every day. Based on my skills and interests, resistance looks like knitting Melt the ICE hats, mending clothes for myself and people close to me, and having the audacity to be unafraid of difficulty. Convenience is too convenient. I don't want AI to do my thinking for me. I know the whole of the issue is nuanced, but the way AI being used now is straightforward brainrot.

To quote "Network" (1976), "I'm mad as hell, and I'm not gonna take this anymore!"

spotlight

"Network " (1976) is a nice double feature with "The China Syndrome" (1979). Both have groovy clothes and ask what space the news occupies in TV entertainment. They're both wonderfully of their time.

"The China Syndrome" deals in nuclear anxiety. Attentive readers will know this is a budding special interest of mine. "Network" hones in on anchorman Howard Beale's dissatisfaction with the world, and by candidly expressing it on live TV, inspires others to also voice their upset. "I'm mad as hell, and I'm not gonna take this anymore," the city shouts from its windows. Through intricate office politics, the news anchor is not immediately fired but instead is made star of the eponymous "Howard Beale Show."

I won't spoil the rest. What I enjoyed about "Network" was that it was full of talent. The acting, writing, blocking, set dressing, storytelling, all of it was done so well. Older movies rely heavily on dialogue, and there you can see how characters are dynamic. The camera shots are long. Monologues are abundant and the audience gets the time needed to soak them in. I love the craftsmanship of a well-made movie.

thoughts on time

I think what I want to say about time isn't what usually goes in a monthly newsletter. I can't boil all of it down quite yet. But know I'm thinking about time a lot. The part I want to tell you today is that there is time to recuperate. That the things that you spend your time on are the things you're spending your life on. I don't remember which Cal Newport book it was, probably Digital Minimalism, where Newport says that in order to take back your time and spend it aligned with your values, there are things you're doing now that you'll have to give up.

What are you willing to give up in order to live the life you want to live? Making things with my own hands is important to me, and is so fulfilling. But I don't think I'm giving it the time it needs. I'm writing more, learning the guitar, spending time just listening to the birds. I also want to create for long long long stretches of time. I need to give myself a day, not just an hour. The utterly invaluable gift of time. That's what I want to talk about. Unalloted time. Free time. Time unbound from any obligation.

I think we all need more of it.

I've found a ritual for myself that makes time stretch out endlessly before me. On Saturday mornings I read, preferably something that makes me think with my heart, then I do some yoga, a meditation, then have a hot fruity tea. I listen to the neighborhood like it's a song. And I feel utterly contented. If everyone could have this, whenever they needed it, I think there would be a lot more good in the world.

i love magazines

The magazine page layouts are what I really enjoy. If you remember back to my January issue, I've been lightly stalking a man named Leonard Koren through his published work, one of which is a magazine called WET. I haven't gone on the hunt for extant issues, but I see how his experience laying out pages of WET shines in his 1984 book New Fashion Japan. I feel more inspired by magazines than sites like Pinterest and Instagram. Magazines are a special place where photography, writing, design, and je ne sais quoi come together to blast my eyeballs with the undistilled essence of an editorial vision. Magazines realize fantasy.

But here's the issue: magazines need to be WEIRDER. (Or maybe I'm not looking hard enough for the real weirdos out there). The corporate beige-ificaction of magazines is depressing. I'm being talked at like I'm a business, that I need to "build my brand" and "manage up" in my relationships. I'm a human being. A sweaty stinking animal! And so is everyone else! I'm done pretending that perfection is attainable. I want a magazine that celebrates humanity as it is, and not as the shiny android programmed to politely consume.