This Week
Hello, friends. Welcome to Leo Season.
Prepare yourself.
It’s also my birthday today. I wrote about it:
Today I am thirty-eight years old, which means that I have accumulated thirty-eight years’ worth of facts, trivia and mythology about what my birthday means. My birthstone is a ruby (represents positive energy, passion and prosperity). My astrological sign is Leo (represents confidence, ambition and self-centeredness). I share my birthday with Helen Mirren (heck yeah), Stanley Kubrick (checks out) and Kevin Spacey (unfortunate). I was born under a significant star, destined for greatness in the company of an elite—just like everyone else, in one way or another.
Full piece at my website: On birthdays.
Links
An oral history of the 1919 Chicago race riots.
“The denial of climate change and the denial of racism rest on the same foundation: an attack on observable reality.” What the believers are denying.
“And it strikes me: it’s not that women haven’t had the talent to make their mark in the world of ideas and art. They’ve never had the time.” A woman's greatest enemy is a lack of time to themselves.
A case for bringing back hand-drawn animation.
Photographs from the opening day of Disneyland in 1955.
"It didn't come from me. It came from the poet in me, and there was a poet in Roy." Rutger Hauer on the legacy of Blade Runner and his “tears in the rain” speech. Of course, the other poetry here is the fact that if anything can capture moments so that they are not lost and they live on past their creators, it's film.
A handy guide to example pronoun usage: pronoun.is
As a dedicated writer-by-hand, I always report new pieces about handwriting. Longreads just published an entire list of articles and essays about keeping a handwritten notebook.
Sophie Lucido Johnson’s illustrated tale of keeping a diary—your own or someone else’s.
“These were small things, and I told myself it was stupid to feel disappointed by them. I had arrived in my thirties believing that to need things from others made you weak. I think this is true for lots of people but I think it is especially true for women. When men desire things they are ‘passionate.’ When they feel they have not received something they need they are ‘deprived,’ or even ‘emasculated,’ and given permission for all sorts of behavior. But when a woman needs she is needy. She is meant to contain within her own self everything necessary to be happy.” The crane wife.
Reading/Watching/Listening
I read Magic for Liars by Sarah Gailey, a deft mashup of hardboiled detective and modern fantasy. A bit like if Jessica Jones got dropped into the Harry Potter universe. Straight-up fun and compelling read.
The new Veronica Mars dropped a week early on Hulu! I’m a fairly recent convert to the cult of Mars, but I was caught up and ready for the new edition, and it did not disappoint. It’s complex and grown-up without losing its charm or central history. It feels like the best possible outcome for reviving a show close to two decades after it first aired: a natural evolution.
Also on Hulu, season three of Harlots has begun. I’ve talked a lot about this show in the past, so I’ll keep my praise brief here—and, obviously, I haven’t seen the entire season yet, but so far it’s maintained the force of the previous seasons, minus the considerable presence of Samantha Morton (who, SPOILER ALERT, is thought to be dead but really isn’t and I assume she’ll be back after a while, probably in the next season).
The Criterion Channel has a collection of films directed by Ida Lupino. After you watch these, seek out her Outrage.
Even Shirley Jacksons stans might not know that this year saw the release of a film adaptation of We Have Always Lived in the Castle, because it seemingly didn't have much of a theatrical release after its festival circuit. But it's available now via streaming purchase/rental and I was looking forward to it. As a Shirley Jackson stan myself, I have to admit this film feels like it's missing something, but I can't put my finger on what. Maybe the story is just not one that can be filmed well. It's an otherwise very faithful adaptation of the book with some terrific performances (Sebastian Stan is predictably great). This film probably means more to the people who love the novel, which is fine for us, but probably not what makes a successful film. If you do love the novel, however, this feels like a worthwhile companion to it.
Around
I’ve opened up two virtual mentoring sessions for beginning tech speakers from underrepresented minorities on next Friday, August 2. If you or someone you know is interested in having a chat with me about what it’s like to speak at tech conferences or meetups, head over to my mentoring page to sign up: jenmyers.net/mentoring/ If you’re not in tech but would like to talk about speaking in other contexts, I’m happy to help if I can, so also feel free to jump in.
It’s nearing the end of July, which means it’s time for the monthly essay for paid subscribers, which will ship soon. You can get it, plus the past ones (including a link to the full premium subscriber archive from the past year) by signing up on Substack.
Thanks for reading. I appreciate you. Give yourself a little gift today, on behalf of me.
Love,
Jen
Connections
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Essay archive: http://modernadventuress.com/
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Email: hello@jenmyers.net
Post: P.O. Box 13114 Chicago, IL 60613
Today’s quote is from Zelda Fitzgerald, fellow Leo and patron saint of difficult women.