Aha! There you are. Gonna try to keep this one quick.
ā ļø āHowās the book going?ā
Two current motifs in the desert of Booklandia:
After taking a short break from the book draft, Iām starting the next set of revisions. (Thank you to helpful also-writing-a-book colleague Mark Bergen for suggesting I not look at the draft at all for several weeks.) The time away has allowed me to look at my writing with fresh eyes, but sometimes the eyes are ā¦. too fresh. Past Ellen apparently wrote some baffling sentences (not in a good way) and also has no memory of having done so. At times it feels like Iām combing through the scene of a crime I committed while sleepwalking. The good news is I still have the ability to surprise myself.
Iām still working my way through the piles of video/audio/etc. that I have related to OneTaste. Sometimes this means watching videos on 2x speed while folding laundry or cooking dinner. The archives are a blessing and a curse: lots of material, but thereās actually too much for me to go through it all. The marginal returns are quickly diminishing. Every reporter knows thereās a point when gathering more information turns from āreportingā into āoverreporting.ā I have misjudged that point many times. Probably doing it again here.
āļø Other things for you to click on
The book Iām writing is about the sexual wellness company OneTaste, but I havenāt discussed it much in this newsletter because a lot of the reporting is sensitive. But if youāre curious about the subject, Vice put out a documentary series recently called True Believers, and one episode focuses on OneTaste. (I do some classic b-roll laptop-typing toward the end of the episode.)
You can watch the episode here (it looks like the free option works with ads). The original article of mine they reference is here.
Also, a few months ago I went on a reporting trip to Joshua Tree to live in a van alongside other people living in vans. Then I wrote a feature for Businessweek about Kift, the startup thatās behind it all. Itās vans, mixed with co-living (if you know me you know I have a passion for communes!!), plus some wild ideas about how the cities of the future will exist online instead of irl. Read the story here.
š¦ŗ Yeah I have power vested in me
In non-book updates, I successfully survived the gantlet (come at me for a spirited discussion of gantlet vs. gauntlet) of Summer 2022 Weddings, ft. the backlog of everyone who postponed weddings from 2020 and 2021.Ā
Something extra special: I was lucky enough to officiate two weddings in June. If you ever get the chance to, I highly recommend it, mostly because you get the best view in the house for the ceremony. Yes, ordainment is free on the internet. And yes, you can insist on calling yourself minister.
Lest you think itās all herebys and pronouncements, I will mention that during one of the ceremonies, right after some profoundly beautiful vows, I lost my place in my script, panicked, and then said āfuckā loud and clear into the mic. Even though I had worked hard to write clever jokes into my script, no one remembered them and instead people congratulated me on my foul mouth.
ā
Review it with Huet: slacklining
I like to learn new physical skills, but I also am deeply uninterested in exposing myself to any physical danger. As a result, I have found a sense of accomplishment in suitably low-octane challenges such as 1) beginner salsa dancing and 2) learning how to open a beer bottle with another beer bottle. I also hate heights.
In conclusion, I learned to slackline last summer (thanks to some patient and well-balanced friends) and I love it. Itās more difficult and more satisfying than it looks (which is usually kind of silly). And most importantly, if you feel yourself falling, you justā¦ jump approximately 18 inches onto the soft, study ground. My ideal sport.
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See you next issue, whenever I get around to it!!! Remember, time is an illusion
