“A candle doesn’t lose its flame by lighting other candles. I just want my babies to light other candles.”
—Akbar Cook, Principal of West Side High School, Newark, New Jersey (video)
My friend Doug and his friend Brian have put together a beautiful book called Trail Running Illustrated: The Art of Running Free, and I am biased because they sent me a free copy, but it really is beautiful. And it really is a book.
(Bookshop)(Mountaineers Books)(Amazon)
If you’re someone who isn’t quite sure what to think of this boom in Substack newsletters, and you’re hesitant to subscribe to something that puts more emails in your inbox, I guess I would ask you, how about a newsletter that’s totally about snacks, and their history—doesn’t that kind of sound like it wouldn’t be a bad thing? Because in my opinion, it is a little sign of hope, that a guy in Minneapolis can be sitting around one day in 2021 and go, “Fuck it, I’m starting a newsletter that’s all about snacks,” and then the newsletter is awesome, and its very existence slightly dilutes all the bummer shit on the internet these days. This week: Bugles.
Some days I’m like “scrolling through Twitter makes me feel like garbage,” and then some days someone on Twitter is like, “check out this map projection of early human migration showing 21,000 miles of walking over tens of thousands of years,” and I’m like, “yeah.”
The chances that you’ll get excited about a collection of airline seatback safety cards are probably pretty low, but just in case, here’s a link
I have done about 20 laps of this album in the past month, and I can’t exactly explain why I like it so much. The energy of the first three tracks just feels so, I don’t know, fall 2021?
A hero: “Mr. Chan, a 72-year-old former tax lawyer based in Los Angeles, claims to have dined at nearly 8,000 Chinese restaurants across the US and counting. Each is archived in a spreadsheet that he has maintained for four decades, along with thousands of restaurant business cards and menus.” (Thanks, Al)
—Brendan
THE SEMI-RAD SHOP WILL BE CLOSING AT MIDNIGHT MST ON SUNDAY, DECEMBER 5TH
THESE (AND MORE) GIFTS AVAILABLE UNTIL THEN:
Did You Have A Good Adventure? — Set of 10 Greeting Cards
I Hate Running and You Can Too — Signed Book
Thank You For Not Fucking Up The Planet — Tote Bags
Woo, Work Vs. Skiing — Coffee Mug
How Much Further To The Top — Prints
The Camping Life — Signed Book
Dirty & Sweaty & Tired & Happy — Shirts
Surviving the Great Outdoors — Signed Book
Is My Dog Ready To Go For A Walk? — Prints
Anything Can Be A Taco — Shirts
Coffee and Its Profane Effects — Coffee Mug
Practice Maximum Enthusiasm – Coffee Mugs and Shirts
Dream Big Work Hard Be Kind — Prints
