Chris Brooks Newsletter 039
It has been hot and very humid here at Keuka Lake. Thankfully a breeze came in this afternoon, and I'm watching the closing minutes of the opening round of the Open Championship. Hope you have a fun weekend planned.
1. 🚘 Where I've Been Traveling
This newsletter is late partly because we spent two weeks in Scotland with friends and family. It was an amazing trip. Julie and I have grand plans for a significant return.
2. 📖 What I've Been Reading
Articles:
- 'If men couldn’t have sex with me, they didn’t know what to do with me': Alanis Morissette on addiction, midlife liberation and the predatory 90s is a good read. Watch her documentary "Jagged" if you haven't.
- Will AI destroy all our jobs? Seth Godin has a good take in Productivity, AI and pushback; some jobs will be destroyed, others will be created.
- I first watched "This is Spinal Tap" on VHS with other computer nerd friends while in high school in Albuquerque. Maybe a year and a half passed before I saw it again; after moving to Omaha then Indianapolis, friend Mike had it on Betamax and it became weekly viewing for us. Richard Roeper has a nice tribute piece on the mockumentary: It’s One Louder: “This is Spinal Tap” Turns 41. Any true fan knows that Richard messed up the Nigel quote: "Beethoven and Bach". Of course it is Mozart and Bach; that's how it is a "Mach" piece!
- I'm firmly in the not-a-fan-of sites like Medium (own your own content; use your own domain!) but still enjoyed the retrospective Fell in a hole, got out. by CEO Tony Stubblebine.
Books:
- I can't recommend John & Paul - A Love Story in Songs enough - this is such a good new take on John and Paul. A warm, touching, and at times surprising take on their love for each other from their first meeting to just after John's death. The framing of using songs helps a lot, as does the use of the "Get Back" documentary. Consider: "Two of Us" rings even truer if you think of Paul singing about John vs. Linda.
- I did indeed finish Wind and Truth. An epic finish to an epic half-series.
- During a day of travel delays returning from Scotland I read the Sanderson Cosmere novella Edgedancer. Fun back / side-story on Lift, the Awesome radiant with a big appetite.
3. 🍿 What I've Been Watching
TV Shows:
- I avoided Shrinking because I don't like shows or movies about therapy, but glad we started this. We'll finish when we (Julie and I) have some alone time.
- We also both started Stick but Julie jumped ship. It isn't great, but it does seem to get better midway through the season.
Movies:
- Our final Scotland prep movie was the surprisingly good Mary Queen of Scots (2018). She was a centerpiece of a lot of our touring. Wish we had also watched Elizabeth; that's in the queue.
4. 🎶 What I've Been Listening To
Music:
- Josh Ritter has a new album coming, and this new video right now.
- Jeff Tweedy has a new triple album coming, and this new video.
- My exclusive album club discussed The Beach Boys' Pet Sounds and of course we both espoused our love for it. The first album we ever covered was Rubber Soul and I think we both agree that Pet Sounds doesn't quite hold up (definitely not vs. Revolver) but the best 3-5 songs on Pet Sounds are timeless classics.
- Ed Sheeran's ➗ is our current album and I'll give a preview here for Jim: 👎.
5. 🎮 What I've Been Playing
- Nearly done with my second playthrough of Baldur's Gate 3.
6. 🤔 Five Year Plan Sketch
Julie will confirm: I think and plan ahead, sometimes with crazy-ass ideas that never come to fruition. Still, I find that planning (and advertising) helps make these dreams become reality. Here's my current sketch, from a shared Apple Note with Julie:
Stuff to fit in somewhere:
- Wilco in Chicago, maybe Wilco in Europe?
2025
- Scotland in June
- Extended drive out to OR/CA in September / October. * Through Wisconsin, golfing (Sand Valley / Nekoosa) * Teddy Roosevelt NP * Glacier NP * North Cascades NP * Olympic NP
2026
- Spring Utah trip – Cedar Mesa, Canyonlands, etc.
- Late spring Vietnam for wedding, possibly bicycle tour somewhere? Or maybe a Normandy bicycle adventure.
- Summer Ireland golfing trip with Jacob and Kaitlin? * Or Camper van trip to Canada? * Or family golf trip to Mammoth Dunes etc. in WI?
- Fall overlanding in Africa
2027
- Summer in Scotland or Ireland? Can Mike run the cottages for part of the summer?
- Summer John Muir Trail backpacking? This could also be a late fall thing, coming back from NY a bit earlier
2028
- Summer: Wales Backpacking
- Fall: overlanding in Africa
2029
- Back to Spain for a while?
Have a great rest of July. And join me in saying: "Let's go Rory!"
-Chris
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