Author: Chad
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Links of the moment
An ongoing series I am proud to be Team Oxford Comma. How NASA writes space-proof code. The 6 types of movie pool partygoers.
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I don’t know, I need to learn
Here’s an exchange I had with my 4 year old while on a recent walk around the pond: “Papa, guess what: penguins cannot fly.” “Why is that?” “I don’t know, I need to learn.” We were walking past some ducks when he said this so that must have triggered the fact about penguins, which I’m…
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Bye bye, butterflies
Recently my aunt got my 4 year old a “something special for the new big brother” gift: a popup butterfly garden with a cup of live caterpillars. The cup came in the mail prefilled with caterpillar food, which they ate over the course of a week as they grew and eventually retreated into their own…
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Links of the moment
An ongoing series In praise of Letterboxd. Real-life infrastructure that looks like sci-fi. Design notes on the alphabet. A cure for white supremacy: psychedelics?
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Bye bye, book bans
My adopted home state of Illinois has got 99 problems but now book bans ain’t one: Illinois has become the first state to legislate against the banning of books in public libraries, a practice that has been on the rise across the United States as conservatives look to suppress some books dealing with race, history…
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It’s a me, Super Mario on N64
Recently my father-in-law unearthed my wife’s old Nintendo 64 console, which was accompanied by the Super Mario cartridge. I was skeptical it would still work after all these years, but we plugged it in and it fired up like a charm. I didn’t have video game consoles at home growing up, so my exposure to…
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Media of the moment
An ongoing series Reality. Riveting recreation of the arrest of whistleblower Reality Winner, played by Sydney Sweeney. This was my first encounter of Sweeney and was thoroughly impressed. Just released on (HBO) Max. Queer Eye season 7. A quality hang as usual. Ted Lasso season 3. Hard to top season 1 but have enjoyed watching…
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Links of the moment
An ongoing series A museum of vintage gas station memorabilia. Fascinating look behind the scenes of celebrity ghostwriting. How the U.S. almost became a nation of hippo ranchers. Shoutout to Hvaldimir, the beluga whale that’s also a Russian spy.
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How ‘Hairspray’ and ‘Once’ made me love musicals
Originally published at Cinema Sugar Josh, you’re in a musical. That’s how musicals work. When you’re too emotional to talk, you sing. When you’re too emotional to sing, you dance.” — Melissa, Schmigadoon I went through a phase as an adolescent when I didn’t get musicals. Not only that: I actively resented them. They’re cheesy…
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Recent Views
More photography here and on my Instagram. Spotted these two lights reflecting off the Whole Foods cafe counter, the rainbow from outside and the fluorescent light from above: Investigating a hail storm from our porch: Tunnel vision at the children’s museum: It’s a shame our neighbors live in a bubble: Baseball diamond? Nah—giant sandbox:
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Burning the midnight typewriter oil
Got these cool artifacts from my dad’s friend, whose late mother kept them with her ancient typewriter for lord knows how long. Perhaps a member of the Typosphere can help with dating them, and explaining the “FR 25” on the oil can?
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Seagulls patrol the shoreline
A poem ⁂ Seagulls patrol the shoreline, murmurating against the gusts and peeking down for fish beneath the surf. We patrol for rocks in the sand and swoop down for skipping stonesthat soon will join the fish.
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Links of the moment
An ongoing series The sound of a dialup modem, visualized. Turning broken plates into art. Drawing the cozy web. CGP Grey hilariously grades all 50 U.S. state flags.
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Au Revoir to Aaron Rodgers
With Aaron Rodgers now officially traded to the Jets, I felt compelled to commemorate the end of his era in Green Bay—something I did for his predecessor. It feels impossible to fully honor Rodgers’ on-the-field legacy given his endless highlights and memorable moments over the last 15 years. But I’m with Mike Spofford at Packers.com,…
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On the passage of bathtime
There’s a quote I discovered floating around Instagram Reels that people use as narration for clips of their little kids: You have little kids for four years. And if you miss it, it’s done. That’s it. So, you gotta know that. Lots of things in life you don’t get to do more than once. That…
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The Church of ‘Bull Durham’
Really enjoyed reading Ron Shelton’s The Church of Baseball: The Making of Bull Durham, which I followed up with a rewatch of Bull Durham. He has such a wry, matter-of-fact style and perspective on his careers, most notably minor-league baseball player and movie writer-director. Some quotes… On being an athlete with intellectual curiosities: Around this…
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Lifeblood of reading
Alan Jacobs gets to the crux of the ongoing Hachette v. Internet Archive lawsuit, which pits publishers against libraries in the quest to determine who has the right to distribute digital books: Whatever forces are arrayed against libraries are also arrayed against readers. But publishing conglomerates don’t care about readers; they only care about customers.…