For the last several weeks (ok, months), I’ve ignored my Pocket list as I try to get through Ron Chernow’s Hamilton (which for the record, is REALLY good).
Then I discovered that my trusty Chicago Public Library has the audio version available for check-out, and suddenly I’m freed up to go back to reading the quick hits of my ever-growing links list. Such is my love for the written word read aloud that I let myself off the Chernow hook until my name comes up on the hold list for the audiobook.
What I’ve been reading this week is nothing if not eclectic, and I gotta be honest: I loved every single one of them for their own unique reasons.
Though I’m not a reader via any other channel, I follow The Atlantic on Facebook and click on many of their posts, their content reliably interesting. As a marketing nerd, I found this story about how Subaru defined a niche in the lesbian market fascinating. Rather than recoil from a minority customer base, they – in today’s parlance – leaned in, owned it and won.
Last month, I caught Louis C.K.’s stand up show at the Chicago Theater, and he (of course) killed it. Already a fan of his comedy – and his TV show – I’ve come to adore his pragmatic, sincere approach to life in general. This interview on Vulture is exceptional. So exceptional, I’m pulling out a whole section and plopping it right here in the middle of my list:
You’re not an insult comic, but I think it’s fair to say that your work generally skews dark. What are you optimistic about? What makes you happy?
Trillions of things. I feel safe talking about dark subjects because they exist in a world full of life and beauty. Everybody who’s alive is choosing to be. You can take yourself out anytime. The whole population is a bunch of people who are choosing to keep trying. Obviously my kids and other people in my life that I love are a big part of what keeps me going, and I try to be useful to my family members. I try once in a while to call a friend and say, “Hey, what’s going on in your life? Is there anything that I can help you with right now?” Or I’ll throw influence or work at somebody who needs it.
A lot of times it’s just, like, listening to a person. Life is busy. Listening is like the No. 1 thing that actually cures almost everything. A lot of times in life there’s not a solution to your situation. Sometimes something just sucks. When you’re in one of those moments where you think this is just bad, after you get it off your chest you go, “All right. I’ll be okay.” People need to be listened to.
This guy, amiright? Moving on…
Sree Sreenivasen is the marketing mind behind many of my favorite parts of The Met – their app, their website, their social presence. Or at least, he was. This week, he was unceremoniously let go from the institution after serving three years as their chief digital officer. What he did next made news: he told his network about it. Life is so much more fulfilling when we’re open to it.
Last week, I went to an advanced screening of Nicolas Winding Refn’s The Neon Demon. Gorgeous to look at, it hasn’t been all that well received since opening. In the trilogy that is Drive, Only God Forgives and this latest offering, only Drive has found any success at both the box office and with critics. But was it a good movie? Thrillist investigates.
For reasons I won’t go into here, I’ve been a little on edge at work. This listicle from Inc crossed my Facebook feed this week, and it hit home in so many ways I can’t begin to count them. I have, for whatever reason, landed more than once in work environments that, if not broken, are undeniably cracked. Reading these bad habits in one place like this? I’ve decided it’s the internet telling me I’m not crazy.
Following the shooting in Orlando, I had a hard time articulating the shock and sadness I felt along with the rest of the country (world?). Then, as he is so good at doing, Nate DiMeo’s the memory palace addressed the tragedy with eloquence and grace in a recent episode. This concept of the safe space has really stuck with me, making this New York Times feature on gay celebs and their first visit to gay bars quite poignant.
