Morning, friends!
How are these summer months treating you? Seems like the weather’s the hot topic (no pun intended…) of the moment, so here’s my take on the local climate: loving the thunderstorms, avoiding the humidity, and grateful for A/C. What’s the verdict in your neck of the woods?
Whilst avoiding drowning in the above-ground water vapor, I’ve stumbled upon an assortment of interesting, sometimes thought-provoking, generally non-news-related links to share. So, without further ado…
- Feeling homesick? Curate your very own, personalized ambient soundtrack with score a score— whether that includes a coffee machine, jackhammer, roommate on Zoom, chirping birds, or a neighbor’s crying baby.
- Two German designers have been collecting any plastic cutlery they encounter for the past 20 years, and have now teamed up to present the exhibit Spoon Archaeology at the London Design Biennale 2021. One of those oddly fascinating things…
- Drone delivery startup Zipline is expanding its medical supplies distribution operations in the US and Africa, after accelerated growth through the pandemic. I wrote a paper on them for a class a few years back, and am excited to see their continued success!
- A man and a dog, walking around the world. What a life.
- All the coolest graphs and charts you can imagine!
- Very interesting visual/educational article on African textiles, and the complex stories they tell
- I spent way too much time on this useless (for me) but weirdly satisfying web app that creates a color palette given any search term you enter.
- Compare yourself to average, then see how you compare to… average. We can’t all be smarter than average, can we?
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I found this essay from Kelly Williams Brown’s new book, reflecting on the power of crafting during some of the worst years of her life, to be honest, authentic, and in some specific ways, strangely familiar to my recent experiences… especially her closing words:
I cannot control the world, and I often cannot control my own mind, but dang it, I can make you an extremely thoughtful embroidered gift. No matter how far gone I feel, my fingers still know how to fold an eensy paper star or a cute snail. In this teeny arena, I will always find success, which reminds me of some important things.
I am resilient and scrappy as fuck, and you should never, ever bet against me. My crafts are not perfect or beautiful, but they are charming and I mean them. And sometimes, isn’t that all one can ask for?
That’s it for our tenth edition! Anything strike your fancy? As always, I’d love to hear your comments, opinions, random facts, recent pet updates…
Hope you enjoy whatever the day has to bring!