One thing I love about stepping out for a tinto is that the people in transit by my vendor friend are from all walks of life, so rare is the day when I don't learn something new from passersby.

Today I had a great chat with a curtidor (tanner) who walked me through the different processes used to treat leather for different industrial products, and we discussed the challenges in transitioning older companies to new production techniques. New Spanish vocab *and* technical know-how in one go! 🥳

Watch for spam 🌭s on the firehouse this morning!

Not everyone's looking for that kind of "feast" first thing. 🤨

*takes a long sip of tea*

Another day, another reminder (this one from Substack, screencapped from WSJ) that legacy media is not your friend.

Travel safely out there.

And turn the darned feeds off sometimes, if ever they "start" to drive you mad.

#Politics #MediaLiteracy

#Zine

Update:

The digital edition will be locked at end-of-day, when I port a vectorized version to InDesign to prep the PDFs for the printer's preferred layout and colours (black and blue).

Canva's super-easy for online hosting (for now, at least; we were once considering a "solar" site of our own), but look for @corlin's call for mail-out details next!

@JGSchaeffer @ceorl @corlin @IrelandTorin @Boyceaz @BosmangBeratna @JeniRizio @POOetryma @jenebene @AndersonArtwork @redenigma @phase2

In this Rewind, we reflect on a brutal slice of US action in WWII: corpse desecration in the Pacific theatre, to send "souvenirs" home. This isn't about sensationalizing our worst side, though; it's about looking pragmatically at history and remembering that war is not and has never been "glorious". It's a part of the human condition that normalizes deranged thinking, both in battle and at home, and which we never seem to find the time to reckon with in full.

#History

https://open.substack.com/pub/mlclark/p/this-is-a-good-jap-what-we-forget

For me, a key turning point in humanist practice was learning to go a step further from something I think we all know better than to do:

Don't police others' grief.

Simple, right?

But at some point, a lightbulb went off, and I started seeing "grief" at the core of a lot more everyday action. Arguments we start online. Stances we take in response to the news and its actors.

It's easier to find more effective sites for change when we aren't wasting so much time stabbing at each others' wounds.

And on that cheery note, here! Have a neat new (year-old, not today on CNN) explanation for the gravity hole in our ocean, on this beautiful wreck of a potato-planet we call home.

#Science
#TakeMeGravityHole!
#MediaLiteracy (just because it's been reported on legacy media doesn't mean it's automatically a breaking science or tech story; check the source!)

New Scientist (Paywall cracked)
https://archive.ph/w0sJV

#Death

I just watched the bodycam of Sonya Massey's murder, and on top of how gallingly wrong her death was--and how many people live in fear of the police in the US & Canada for this reason--my heart just breaks for how often SOP in these cases seems to involve utter indifference to being *with* someone once they're wounded and down.

I'd like to think that if I ever accidentally caused a mortal wound, I'd at least have the integrity to be present with the victim in their last moments.

FFS.

The one time I make coffee that isn't as black as my heart, I accidentally put a little cumin in, instead of cinnamon.

Fortunately, a splash of vanilla evened it out surprisingly well.

I... might even like this? 🤨

(This is why I take my coffee "neat". Too many new feelings with other ingredients in the mix!)

@Graci knows there are two ways to read this post, and both are correct here. 😉🌈

The Passion of the Fruit!

#MaricuHELLya
#CoSoFood

I'm not going to indulge many of the "think pieces" spun around the rest of this US election cycle (you folks know what you need to do!), but this one was just such a perfectly 🦇💩 look at the dangers of letting rich tech goofs spout off about politics without proper guardrails against outsize social influence, & I bet others will appreciate the chuckle.

I'm going for a walk, so don't expect to make biodiesel out of *my* meatsack any time soon!

#Politics #Technology #US

https://newrepublic.com/article/183971/jd-vance-weird-terrifying-techno-authoritarian-ideas

Today's *first* piece carries over from Tough Times Tuesday, because yesterday I realized there was no easy way to write responsibly about recent Bangladeshi student protests without addressing the weight of competing histories in this country's distinct struggle for a secular democratic state.

I hope you enjoy the explainer!

I think there are very important lessons in this heartache of a regional story, and current conflict, for us all. #Humanism #Democracy #Politics

https://open.substack.com/pub/mlclark/p/back-and-forth-in-bangla-politics

🤨

I need to talk with my manager* about some of my newsletter topics. Humanity really, really, really sucks sometimes.

(You'll see soon enough, but whew.)

The manager:

This Bangladesh piece is messy, & won't be finished by midnight, but I'm just going to keep it rolling this eve and get it and Rewind Wednesday finished before dawn (sent out morning & night so I don't spam your inboxes).

Then I can greet said dawn with a park walk, snooze a bit, and wake up ready to finish a short story for submission.

One way or another, I *will* get my routines back by August--so help me Dog, or Duck, or whatever other critter is on hand to offer a lil' aid. 🤞

#AmWriting

#Zine

Are you looking for abZurd, CoSo's homegrown, 99 ⁴⁴⁄₁₀₀% pure, pro-nature, craft-positive, and community-lovin' Zine?

In my profile and this pinned post, I have a Linktree that will be populated by links to the digital editions of each issue.

When we have more ducks in a row for future issues, you'll see a handy link for printing and payment details here, too.

For future issues, mail submissions to:

abZurd_Zine @ proton.me

Thanks for your interest in the mag!
https://linktr.ee/abzurdmagazine