a stream

Here goes my second “listens last week” post. Strange exercise, but whatever.

I think next week is going to be a Toro y Moi kind of week, but not yet. Currently listening to the sounds of the birds and the creek by my backyard, and somebody’s prop plane looping around above the city macking a racket this morning.

Ugh. Fell into the “Writing the Great American Email” trap at work today. Several times.

Some people like hearing themselves talk, I guess I like reading myself write.

I admit, I absolutely thought this was a graphic novel that I was going to blaze through in an hour, until the moment I opened it the other night and found almost 400 pages of un-illustrated, small-font text. Started reading it anyway.

[Inaugural entry!]

A log of my full album or playlist music listens from the past week, with occasional notes and context. Does not include completely random shuffles, unless something worth commenting came up.

[Next week look for a “Links Last Week” log feature as well.]

I’ve explored a lot of alternatives, but I’m going to continue with posting bespoke reading updates here; I’m also going to try and get back to sharing updates on Goodreads again.

1. Tried Taqueria Los Lee for lunch today. +

   I’ve procrastinated actually trying this place for a year or two, so I’m lucky it still is open - the good, easy fast food taco place by my work closed down a couple of weeks ago, so I was finally driven to find a new option. I had gorditas with rice and beans and it was all very solid. I’ll be back for a burrito or tacos or something.

   I like their happy little website, too:

2. This interview with Alok Vaid-Menon was by far the best thing I’ve read/listened to/otherwise taken in this week. +

   Listened casually while eating my lunch - I’m going to need to listen again more carefully and unpack this, and then explore their work.

A man’s life should be constantly as fresh as this river. It should be the same channel, but a new water every instant…Most men have no inclination, no rapids, no cascades, but marshes, and alligators, and miasma instead.

– Henry David Thoreau, from “Monday,” A Week on the Concord and Merrimack Rivers (location 283-284 of 882)

Herein is the tragedy: that men doing outrage to their proper natures, even those called wise and good, lend themselves to perform the office of inferior and brutal ones. Hence come war and slavery in; and what else may not come in by this opening? But certainly there are modes by which a man may put bread into his mouth which will not prejudice him as a companion and neighbor.

– Henry David Thoreau, from “Monday,” A Week on the Concord and Merrimack Rivers (location 283 of 882)

“I love man-kind, but I hate the institutions of the dead un-kind. Men execute nothing so faithfully as the wills of the dead, to the last codicil and letter. They rule this world, and the living are but their executors.”"

– Henry David Thoreau, from “Monday,” A Week on the Concord and Merrimack Rivers (location 282 of 882)