Espresso Shots 7-6-25

Here's my weekly update with a few interesting random findings that I came across the last week or two. I am going to try to make sure they're here in time for you to enjoy with your morning coffee (or beverage of choice) every Saturday or Sunday, and include some of my thoughts around them.

The Latest Drippings ☕️

• Notes from a Public Typewriter. When Michael Gustafson and his wife opened Literati Bookstore, they placed a typewriter at the ready for anyone to use; what they discovered about the writing that resulted was fascinating. I bought the book immediately.
• The Age of the Surefire Mediocre. In my read of the week, this post asks 'why have so many aspects of our lives converged toward boring sludge?' The author has a viable theory in that the 'rise of predictive analytics in creative decision-making leads to a convergence toward familiar and average content, stifling originality.'
• The New Meaning of Tattoos. I had wanted a tattoo for a long time, but didn't finally get one until two and a half years ago. Now I have three, each telling a story about a part of my life - each representing a fragment of an experience or a memory. What I didn't know was how their transient nature has become part of the art form.
• Why You Should Stop Complaining. Scott has some great advice in this read on how to 'convert your complaints into actions that lead to change.' Something else to think about: 'The easy popularity of complaining also explains professional complainers who benefit from the problem never being solved, and earn more popularity than the people actually working to fix the problems everyone is complaining about.'
• Thank God for The Bear. We just finished watching Season 4 the other night, and while it may not have been as amazing as the first two seasons (and is better than season 3's theme of PTSD), I enjoyed this one. Without spoilers, the finale solidified Ebon Moss-Bachrach 's (Richie) as the exceptional standout for the season. 'Chef Sydney, it would be my fucking honor,' (no spoilers) had me choked up.
• That Dropped Call With Customer Service? It Was on Purpose.. Not surprisingly, but endless wait times, the runaround, and excessive procedural fuss are all part of a process to get you to give up is called sludge.
• Inside the Dangerous, Secretive World of Extreme Fishing. Ever wonder why some people 'swim out into rough seas 80 nights a year to hunt for striped bass'? Learn about the wacko sport of 'wetsuiting'.
• The Helsinki Bus Theory  —  When to stick it out. I had never heard of this before the article, but the advice is Something that I am going to reuse. 'The theory claims the secret to a creatively fulfilling career lies in understanding the operations of Helsinki's main bus station' Read the entire post to go into the details on how the bus station runs. Still, the key to finding your creative voice is right there: 'It's simple. Stay on the bus. Stay on the fucking bus.'
• The Strength You Gain by Not Taking Offense. Choosing how you react is the lesson of the Dichotomy of Control, so this article on the 'Age of Offense' hit my radar. It has a bit of a different spin that I particularly enjoyed. as it has a bit of a. 'The [second] issue, however, is the one on which I wish to focus, because, for most people, being too easily offended is worse for one's own quality of life than being obnoxiously rude. So instead of spending your efforts trying to stamp out what you find offensive, you should work on being less offended in the first place.'
• The Good Life Is a Moving Target. After my first heart attack, I turned (whether consciously or not) to Stoicism to help me deal with a few things (and, as I like t say - I'm always a work in progress), so this piece from Joan spoke to me. 'The good life, in this view, is less a destination than a milieu. You don't arrive. You participate. But participation requires exclusion. You cannot do everything. You cannot be everyone. The self must learn to shut doors. This is where pluralism quietly reintroduces hierarchy. Not moral hierarchy, but pragmatic necessity. You must pick a lane.'
• Why Your Brain Gets High on Uncertainty. A wild read on how 'the uncertainty of gambling actually releases more dopamine than actually winning' and how important it is to 'crave the thrill of maybe.'
• The New Surveillance State: Why Data Privacy Is Now Essential to Democracy. I tend to shy away from political conversations, but I'll leave this critical nugget out there: 'The core claim here is, I believe, right: there is no democracy without privacy, and we must protect it at all costs.'
• The cult of performative hydration. More than you ever wanted to know about water.

Amor Fati ✌🏻