DC Comics’ face masks, with a mask going to a hospital for every purchase.
A publishing industry strike in solidarity with worldwide protests against racism.
Was asked a trivia question about sci-fi set design: What does greeble refer to? I had to look up the answer (it involves texturing).
AMC reports that “almost all” theaters will reopen in July.
And maybe, just maybe, film production can restart next week (whether or not it will remains to be seen.)
“Hitchens’ razor is an epistemological razor expressed by writer Christopher Hitchens. It says that the burden of proof regarding the truthfulness of a claim lies with the one who makes the claim; if this burden is not met, then the claim is unfounded, and its opponents need not argue further in order to dismiss it.”
Hitchens has phrased the razor in writing as “What can be asserted without evidence can also be dismissed without evidence.”
“I saw that my life was a vast glowing empty page and I could do anything I wanted.”
– Jack Kerouac
Life is painted on empty canvas by our own hands. The image or words you leave behind are all that matter, in the end.
Expectations are funny things. They’re little predictions, and may or may not be accurate for any number of reasons.
When we predict correctly, we get to assert just how smart we are. An incorrect guess may cause as little as temporary denial, or full-blown depression.
When you let go of expectations, you free yourself up to live in the moment. To be honest and understanding, and not dependent on your rightness or wrongness, alleviates that moment when the expectation is either realized or proved incorrect.
Oh, internet. The bastion of great thoughts and petty skirmishes. An open forum of unique ideas and rehashed biases.
How we interact with each other online, if only viewed through that lens, would indicate we aren’t a very hospitable race. Twitter, Facebook, and even the ‘gram can sometimes reveal the vilest and despicable thoughts that we, the engaged, can express.
People say, or type, things online that they would never say in person. Others express opinions that they may have shared with like-minded individuals, maybe two or three in their community, but now they enjoy a world-spanning platform. The like-minded respond to their opinions, reinforcing behavior that, again, would not be socially acceptable in person.
At the same time, we actively engage in digital fisticuffs, trying our best to pivot and outmaneuver our networked opponents. Because they have become our opponents. No opinion but ours is valid online, and we defend our little nook with extreme prejudice, with failure never an option.
And thus we devolve into warlike attitudes with those who would otherwise be someone we could actually connect with.
The internet was, and remains, a great idea. It is its execution that has been stymied somewhat by us, the users.
Trying to remain tolerant of others with different opinions is usually a difficult task. At the best of times, it makes us somewhat uncomfortable to have our opinions challenged. At the worst… Well, wars have been fought for less.
Remember that behind each screen is a living person, little different from you or me. Attacking with verbal violence and vitriol shouldn’t be your go-to response. And rather than a preemptive trolling, why not engage in preemptive understanding?
Another week that just didn’t seem to make sense. 2020 will be the year of incongruities. Pandemic sweeping the world, forcing the US to shut businesses down. Some scared to leave their homes, others adamantly arguing everything should open.
Race relations once again coming to a head, with the question of fairness, inequality, and ethical behaviors at the forefront. How do we respond to our countrymen?
Derisiveness and partisan-pandering; vehemence and bile; hurt, pain, and agony. And with protests, riots, disease, and race, everyone has an opinion, but there is no consensus.
Holding out hope is the best we can do. Saying what we believe is important, but listening is even more so. If all we do is puff our chests until they collide with someone else’s, then the resolution never comes. Just more suffering.
If you like camping, The Dyrt is trying to provide updated information on open and closed campsites around the nation.
Or maybe looking for a new podcast?
If you like to journal, and you’re female, the National Women’s History Museum is interested in your CORONAVIRUS journals.
Saying “No” more, from a 2014 article in the Huffington Post.
Paris, books, c’est l’amour. Used book shopping along the Seine.
And, to soothe the weary soul, the orchestral stylings of composer John Williams, streaming for free until the end of June.
I’ve spent the past four years seeking a disruptive way of doing things. That includes biohacking, career shifts, travel, focusing on writing, among other things. We live in an age of disruptive technology, and there’s no telling where the next paradigm shift will come from.
Being prepared for it doesn’t mean knowing what it is. Rather, it is expecting it to happen, and merely being prepared.
I think it’s telling that the pandemic sent us into a panic spiral in the way that it did. As a nation, and maybe as a global community, we weren’t prepared for the response required in such a situation.
Anticipation is key for the positive, and negative, adjustments to come.
The internet gives us an unrivaled tool for accessing information. It has no equivalent. It is a library, forum, school, and community. However, its prevalence is also its disadvantage.
How easy is it to become distracted while browsing the internet. To let our minds, inclined to wander through a biological imperative, just flit from item to item. The vastness of what can be found through mere keystrokes is boundless.
We rely on those who cultivate the internet for us. Give our attention to the screen through which we access this information.
But at the end of the day, it’s still a screen. It’s nothing more a windowpane through which we’re choosing to experience the world. Its content is ephemeral, not tangible.
Sure, getting outside is hard right now. We’ve all been cooped up. But it’s important to still try and have meaningful, real-world interactions. Not just the online ones.
One of my first shows out of college, I was backstage on Sundays with a handheld UHF/VHF television, probably a Sony Watchman, watching football games. At the time I followed the Miami Dolphins with a religious fervor.
I was new to the theatre. I worked in a sports venue and I grew up a fan of Miami. So, it was just something I did.
In the theatre, there are a number of types. The sports fan is among the rarities. Admittedly I don’t follow sports all that much now. Still own a good deal of Dolphins swag, but I couldn’t even tell you who they got in the Draft.
But the thing is, sports or no, theatre or no, it doesn’t matter what you’re in to. You just need to be you. No one else. Be weird. Be yourself.
Michael's Musings 