#26 - May 2025
Endurance, Monsters, Poehler, Trading Cards
A few weeks ago, my daughter got sick with what we think was the Norovirus, but maybe was also a demonic possession. Who can say? While she was sick, she was very cuddly, which was cute up until the point where the demon began possessing me.
Luckily, we already had her annual checkup scheduled with the pediatrician for that week, so I loaded her into the car and hoped she wouldn’t vomit, because about ten minutes after we left I realized her bag of extra clothes was still on the couch.
I talked with her a little bit in the car during the drive, just checking in with her and letting her know that she was being very brave even though she was sick when she cried out to me, “Daddy, I don’t want to be brave!”
Oof.
I don’t either, kid. I get it. It’s really, really hard to be brave. Especially now, when courage can seem like a fool’s errand, and when the people who lug around such a huge deficit of dignity have their hands on the wheel.
My daughter’s honesty brought up two quotes that have been rattling around in my head for the last couple of weeks.
The first is attributed to a musician and artist named Mary Kate Teske:
No one ever tells you that bravery feels like fear.
And the second is a passage from one of my favorite books, The Story of Edgar Sawtelle by David Wroblewski:
That was how it was, sometimes. You put yourself in front of the thing and waited for whatever was going to happen and that was all. It scared you and it didn't matter. You stood and faced it. There was no outwitting anything.
My hope for us all this week is that we have the courage to put ourselves in front of the task/project/duty that scares us, even when we don’t want to be brave. There’s no outwitting it, after all. But we can stand and face it together.
Here are this week’s links:
Always Go To The Funeral - A brilliant, evergreen piece written for NPR in 2005.
Bareilles - I think Sara Bareilles has the best speaking voice of all time. Listen for yourself on A to Z followers Susan Blackwell & Laura Camien’s podcast, “The Spark File”
Conclave - Probably my favorite movie of 2024.
Design - I’m a sucker for these. An artist imagines how modern logos would look if they were designed in the 80s.
Endurance - Ernest Shackleton’s doomed ship, The Endurance, was found at the bottom of the sea in the Antarctic.
Fire Corps - You can volunteer at your local fire department without having to fight fires or go out on emergency calls.
Garden - Looking for an exciting job in International Relations? The British Ambassador is hiring a gardener for the D.C. residence.
Happy Birthday - What did Hubble take a picture of on the day you were born?
Investigation - A woman wrote in to a Japanese reality show, asking them to investigate how her dog, Sacchan, is getting so fat. The result is one of the best reports I’ve ever seen.
Jellybeans - It’s jellybean season. Did you know the jellybean factory can make a million of them every hour?
Kilmar - The man deported to an El Salvador megaprison because of an “administrative error” is still there. He was living a few miles from me when he was taken by ICE.
Lamprey - If you want nightmares, check out the mouth of a lamprey.
Monsters In The Closet - A podcast episode about mysteries and hijinks involving animals.
Neanderthal - Our ancient human ancestors had bigger brains than us.
Outsidey - You may think you’re an outdoorsy person until you’re invited on a hike. Then you realize you’re not outdoorsy after all…you’re outsidey.
Poehler - Amy Poehler’s new podcast is a smile in audio form, and I recommend subscribing to her YouTube channel, as well.
Quinquennial - Celebrating a five year anniversary? Happy quinquennial!
Rainy - Listen to the sound of a rainstorm anytime, anywhere. I think I was sent this site back in 2012, but I still use it today when I need to focus. In fact, I’m listening to it as I write this!
Sloan - My favorite book of 2024: Moonbound, by Robin Sloan. (He also writes my favorite newsletter)
Trading - A city in Japan has designed Pokemon-style cards that feature middle aged men who live and work across the town—and it’s a huge hit.
Unsweet - Look, I get it. It’s technically a Coca-Cola product. But I challenge you to find a better unsweetened iced tea anywhere. This stuff is incredible.
Vatican - Pope Francis has died at age 88. Now…go watch Conclave!
What to do after the funeral - Two funeral posts in one newsletter? Not sorry about it! Take 25 minutes to watch this talk by Carla Fernandez.
X - If I had $275 to spend on a humidifier it would be this one. No mold!
You can call me… - Went on a Paul Simon binge today. Highly recommend you do, too. Had to share this classic.
Zippo - This is the hardest letter to find topics for, but I thought this was cool: If you buy a Zippo lighter and it gets damaged, they’ll repair it for free.
A special thanks to Vera for sending a link this month.
Have a suggestion for the next issue (especially the letter Z)? I want to hear it! Reach out to me by replying to this email. And if you enjoyed this edition, go ahead and forward it to a friend and tap the heart at the top of the page.
See you in a month,
-Brady