The Shed
I have it all. I’m not wealthy but well-off. I have a wife, a child — a son, four months old — a house, a car. I live by the sea. In summer, the fledgling seagulls perching on the roofs wake us up.
A paean to boredom (and Kafka)
I throw myself against the wall /
Stucco churns inside my skull /
A reeling feeling then a lull /
Void I am but not yet null
Life Hacks
I met up with an old friend today. This friend brings out a side of me I dislike — the me that would, if I let him, get lost in all manner of self-optimizations and “life hacks”.
Kim Charnley on “Sociopolitical Aesthetics”
Today’s engaged artists draw inspiration not from the aesthetic effects of avant-garde art but its social organization. The critical thrust of contemporary socially engaged art is to counter “individualism” with “collectivism”.
Benjamin’s Artwork essay
Modern society opened up the prospect of the progressive realization of human capacities, but in capitalism this development reached an impasse, leading to artificial refinement on the one hand, and a “bestial barbarization, a complete, unrefined, abstract simplicity,” on the other (Marx).
New Year’s Resolutions for the Left
Haidt and Peterson argued that the contemporary left forces people into a choice between truth and social justice. They were right, and by framing the issue as a battle between truth and justice, they clarified why so many people feel repulsed by the left: it lies.
Reflections on diversity, inclusion, and knitting
The idea was to promote under-represented groups and create a more inclusive community – laudable goals. However, things quickly got out of hand. What began as a praiseworthy attempt to make knitting more inclusive degenerated into an online free-for-all.