Hi reader,
Back with part two of the annual "10 for 10" exercise, which I started last week.
Quick note from behind the curtain - I renamed last week's post to follow the convention from last year. My apologies if this causes any kind of chaos with links, repeat email alerts, etc.
Also, for those expecting a more substantial Sunday offering, I recommend following the links in the final section below.
Ten songs (not new) that (I think) I started enjoying this year
Chvrches - "Forever"
Hermitude ft. Jaugar Jonze - "Heart-Shaped Box"
Norah Jones - "Patience"
Of Monsters and Men - "Visitor"
Of Monsters and Men - "Circles"
Mos Def - "Mathematics"
Muse - "Reapers"
Muse - "Apocalypse Please"
U2 - "The Wanderer"
Ten actual TOA quotes from 2020
1) "Best case, the data scientists of 3030 will consider these missives an important 'artifact' or 'fossil' or whatever word becomes equivalent to 'cave drawings'." (1)
2) "With a good alternative available, it’s not hard to imagine a time a few decades in the future when people who still eat meat are regarded as that era’s racists."
3) "I had no time, so I just said, ‘why not add one billion points if you have a YES?’ and went back to my desk."
4) "It's true, when greed is the cause, you often don't have a choice, and when greedy companies recreate the Icarus tale in their Endless Pursuit Of More, the layoff is when the wax starts raining down from the sun."
5) "But there’s something about them that is deeply affecting, the same way I feel when I listen to Nirvana or Avicii, the same way I know is true for the bands and artists that pay tribute to these performers, and I wonder if the hint is in those drums, the mastery and the potential in each beat, the knowledge that making the right sound wasn’t enough to drown out the noise, and the urgency of getting in every last note before the song ended."
6) "First, as I noted on Sunday, don't come here expecting any insight into the pandemic."
7) "But sometimes it's the road itself that changes, a sudden curve appearing in the blink of an eye, and we move in a new, unexpected direction, the surprise unfolding ahead, the unrecognized image in the mirror, forever humming the same tune, with no choice but to remain loyal to the path we've traveled all along."
8) "Spain recently ended an eight week period where citizens were allowed outside for only three activities - buying food, picking up medicine, or... walking the dog. Walking the dog!?! The most dangerous trip is perro-less."
9) "Pascal seemed pretty smart, maybe even smarter than me. I'm sure he would have seen this problem with technology, and said something immortal about it - all of technology's problems stem from their insistence that there is no need to ever sit quietly in a room, alone."
10) "Worst case, I become this era's Pillow Book."
Notes / Footnotes
(1) "I count the words in footnotes for the word count, don't you worry reader."
Come on, one more!
No.
One more!
No.
Booooooooo!
Fine.
11) "I think in some ways the surest sign of something good is a big pile of stuff that would otherwise survive in 99% of my writing. I could go on, but I fear I would make my point."
Ten spending increases
Internet
Streaming TV
Cheese
Beer (from liquor stores)
Bandannas
Running shoes
Tips
Takeout
Patreon memberships
Library fines*
Notes
The first four are in their own ways pandemic necessities but I don't anticipate having any problems scaling down my spending when I hang up my mask... I may continue replenishing my bandanna supply thanks to their value as workout accessories... Running shoes means Altra Running, which I'm happy to support for life thanks to their indispensable role in my managing a self-diagnosed Morton's neuroma... Unlike the opening quartet, the next three items are likely to remain part of the long-term budget... The asterisk denotes that these fines were not charged, so technically I didn't "spend" what I assume would otherwise have been several thousand dollars in late fees.
Ten topics for TOA that I don't have any idea how to write about
1. People who read books so they can disagree with the author
2. Gini Wijnaldum's contract
3. Honesty is important because you can't always be honest
4. If you give people the means, they will try to prevent issues
5. Willing to look dumb is a skill
6. Suburban office parks are doomed
7. People will try meditation before simply slowing down, like strolling instead of walking, or eating at half-speed
8. Areas restricted for smoking encourage smoking
9. Legacy work requires distance to prevent people from lying to you
10. Americans who care more about the world than the country
Notes
What do you want from me? If I had something to say, these wouldn't be on the list, right?
Ten posts I'll use to summarize my pandemic
1) One of the strangest things in the beginning was the formulaic way organizations communicated to every single email address they had on file.
2) Three months after I posted it, my worst fears came true (social distancing was the marshmallow test, or something).
3) I suspect a few years from now a lot of people will forget that it took over a month before local governments even suggested wearing a mask in public.
4) If I had to make a prediction, I would bet that the Beacon Hill bagpiper returns this spring and becomes a permanent fixture in the neighborhood; I stand by my post, but I know now that this type of outdoor activity (anything short of 'spin the bottle', really) has little risk of increasing spread.
5) The first thing I thought about this week when I heard Rush Limbaugh passed was the way he insisted COVID-19 was the common cold; I think it was a year ago today.
6) Game theory is a complex subject, but there is nothing challenging about its application to the pandemic. I'm still ducking around unmasked passersby, and I might hold off on indoor dining until 2022.
7) I should have written "the holidays", but I'll take credit for getting the spirit of the idea.
8) This also happened with someone who wanted me to use his phone to take a picture of his family; I didn't feel bad at all about saying no to him.
9) I am optimistic about the problem I described here - I have seen people point out the inequities of the vaccine distribution process without wasting time linking it into the tangled web of capitalist propaganda.
10) The nonsense continues - the recent story is that "double masking" makes for more effective protection, and we should of course do all we can to slow the spread. But there is a simple fact - no mask in the world is better than staying six feet away. I see these recommendations as being intended for the heroes who have no choice, but it seems like there is always someone out there who wants to use it as an excuse to brush past within six feet of me.
And that's it?
That's it.
Kind of an anti-climactic ending?
What? Why would it end? It isn't over. Keep your mask on, keep your distance, and keep pushing - we're almost there, but it's not over.
And for those who keep reading - thank you.
