I haven’t had a personal newsletter for a couple of weeks. I’ve just been too busy. I’ve crafted the outline both weeks and began writing it, but my Sundays recently have been a little extraordinary. One weekend I just didn’t have the writing. mojo, but the other weekend Audrey ran the NYC Marathon. In both cases, by Monday morning my week was off to the races, and the outlines were left in the dust.
I went to Kubecon in Atlanta, Georgia this week. I left Monday early and came back late Thursday. It was my first real conference experience since Covid. I spoke at APIDays in NYC, but didn’t really attend it. At KubeCon, I went to the talks I wanted to. I met some people in the halls that I knew. I got invited to participate in some interesting open-source work while I was there. I got to hang with some good friends that I actually haven’t met in person. It was a very positive experience overall.
It was hard to be away from Audrey and Poppy all week. We have such a great routine. When the schedule, food, and bike ride changes. You really notice what you have. I know it throws off Audrey and Poppy too. I love seeing the pictures of Poppy lying next to the bike in the office. Waiting. Expecting. I am thankful for my girls. All of em. Traveling just reinforces what I have, and I am thankful to be back home in my own bed, and riding around Central Park each day.
Audrey gave an amazing talk this week called AI Grief Observed. I think it captures what is in the air right now. It captures the shock of Covid in an Internet age being forced into an artificial intelligence future that doesn’t and shouldn’t exist. I recommend reading it. I mean really reading it. It captures the profound sadness of this moment. It captures our collective trauma, and it provides a different look at how we should be framing the very important conversation we need to be having.
While in Atlanta, Georgia I rode the subway from the airport to downtown, and back again. I really love a city that has a rail system to and from the airport. I really love learning a new subway system. I enjoy studying the maps. I enjoy being lost. I enjoy watching who rides the subway. I spend time studying the freeway and other transportation infrastructure while riding the subway. You can tell a lot about a city when it comes to how they invest in transportation.
While I was in Atlanta, Audrey shared a story titled We Use to Read Things. It hit home. It also captured the air of this moment for me. Reading is so important. It genuinely terrifies me to think about how little we all read. Reading is what connects us. The lack of reading feels like what is allowing us to fall apart right now. The lack of reading is why empathy is out of fashion. The lack of reading is why there is so little care right now. The lack of reading is why there such little imagination about our future.
I was reading the story in the Guardian about Dorothy Waugh’s 1930s US national park posters. I love her style. I am a big fan of posters. I love learning about the people behind these posters. I wish we’d fund more posters like this, but every other prominent aspect of today’s culture. As it says in the story, her designs were accessible and avant garden, which is a good tone for bridging the tourist class in this country with art—something that should be an ongoing part of our story.
Audrey and I ate at Dirt Candy this week. It is our favorite vegetarian NYC restaurant. They have seasonal menus, and we’ve managed to experience numerous ones now. The restaurant hits several buttons for me. It is that classic fancy NYC restaurant with small portions that I have in my head. It is also vegetarian. All things that aren’t my jam. Except for at Dirt Candy, they are totally my jam. The place is amazing. It never stops blowing my mind around what is possible with vegetables.
I don’t like missing the experience of writing this newsletter. I enjoy the process of writing it each week. But it is fine if I miss it occasionally. It is more important that I just keep doing it. I like spending the time with my week. I like getting to know myself like this. It is that outside perspective I enjoy. I like looking back over the week and thinking about what matters. I like sifting through the outputs of my week for what feels worthy of writing about, and sharing with you.
“I love deadlines. I love the whooshing noise they make as they go by.” ― Douglas Adams
