The First Post
I think I've tried to start something like this a thousand times over.
When I was in primary school, I wanted to be a writer, and had a bunch of A5 or A4 Spirax notebooks where I would write every day and every week (these notebooks are unfortunately lost to the dark depths of my house's basement, currently overrun by the treasure and detritus of 25 26 years of my life).
In a classic Asian way, my mum helped "encourage" me to write by building rigid structures about how I should write - one page a day over my school holidays, in essay formats that would conform more towards what I would actually have to write for school.
What fun.
In year 12 (or first year uni? I forget), I started a blog - which still exists but hasn't been touched - to help me practice writing. I would set myself different "writing exercises", like "dialogue only" or "descriptive writing" or "prompt: love". It was pretty useful, but it didn't stick...probably because I didn't have a goal in mind for it, and no-one was really reading it.
It's scary to show your work when you're a work in progress.
I'm going to do my best to keep this channel going since:
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I don't really use much social media any more
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But I still take a crap ton of photos and have things to share
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And I want to keep practicing writing, in whatever way I can
It's an experiment - let me know what works and doesn't work for you :)
Hope to talk to you again soon!
Real Life Recommendations
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Pentolina Pasta Bar - A really simple pasta bar in the city that does great Italian fare. Every time I've gone back it has been a great experience - recently had their set menu and that was delicious (as well as great value for money #stingyvince)! Highly recommended :D
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The Fifth Risk - Michael Lewis wrote The Big Short and Moneyball, which were fascinating explorations into the people behind certain phenomena in the world. The Fifth Risk is no exception, tackling one of the greatest risks to the US right now - project management
Adventures on the Information Super-Highway
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The AI Art Gold Rush - Last year was the Year of Games, with AI solving games like Go or DotA. This year seems to be Year of Art, with AI being used to generate art and music...
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Where Warren's Wrong - Stratechery is a great blog that deals with tech news and strategy, and this article is a great breakdown of his thoughts on the antitrust regulation that Senator Warren in the US has proposed. Most interesting to me is the tension between consumer choice (they like using these services!) and regulation for the "social good" (but do they know what's happening with their data?)
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Bill Watterson Returns - The story of how the reclusive creator of Calvin and Hobbes returned to write some guest comic strips