Category: Notes
This is where I keep my shorter thoughts and quick updates. My brain in real-time. These are generally fleeting and published in the moment. Notes are automatically cross-posted to Mastodon and Bluesky, and hit the RSS/JSON feeds, but they are not delivered to readers who subscribe to the site via email. Longer articles and posts I think deserve more visibility live on the main homepage feed.
Perplexity is entering the ecommerce space and offering merchant tools:
Merchants will have access to Perplexity’s API to refine how their products appear in search results and use a custom dashboard to offer insights into search and shopping trends.
This is interesting; I’ll be following.
Robin Pecknold (Fleet Foxes) covered Elliott Smith’s Pitseleh at his NYC show last weekend and it is awesome. One of my favorite Elliott songs and he does it justice.
Manuel Moreale thinks we should celebrate smallness. I agree.
Target debuts ‘weirdly hot’ Santa named Kris in new holiday campaign:
The modern-day take on Santa Claus is introduced in a 30-second commercial, “Born to Be Kris,” where he rides out to a Target in a red Ford Bronco truck (with license plate “Sleigh”).
C’mon Target, is nothing sacred?
I’m absolutely loving this new gem of an EP from Tony Molina. Confront The Truth, an 8-song masterclass in melody and song structure from the Bay Area-based songwriter, gives me serious Roman Candle-era Elliott Smith vibes. Favorite Track: See Me Fall
Mike Thurk is a photographer and outdoor adventurer who is gaining notoriety for his high-contrast, black and white photos. I like his take on the similarities between athletics and art:
I feel the creative process for athletes and artists runs parallel. It’s often I hear athletes discuss the need to find inspiration for certain efforts, and it’s not unlike an artist waiting for a similar moment. They also both reward those that plan, and practice.
Tal Raviv believes the role of product manager is an unfair one, therefore we should work unfairly. I respect Tal greatly and admire his approach, but in my opinion these aren’t unfair tactics. They’re mostly common sense, efficiency-driven and modern PM workflows.
Pittsburgh City Paper makes the case for a national park in Western Pennsylvania. It really is a travesty we are without one considering the natural beauty of this area. My vote would go to shifting Ohiopyle State Park to the Federal level.
Trail runner and endurance coach David Roche is having one heckuva year. I’ll be curious to see if his streak continues and he can achieve his goal of a sub-14 win at Western States next year.
An insightful post-mortem from Taylor Lorenz on the media ecosystem built and funded by the GOP to propel the ‘Bro Vote,’ which ultimately won them the presidency. This piece shines an important light on why the left always seems to be trailing in messaging and media strategy.
Naz Hamid went for a run and put some things in perspective for me:
My breath settled back in and the legs found their beat again and took me home. 5 miles down. 5 miles to keep the systems in check. 5 miles to strengthen this body, sharpen this mind, and create momentum. As I walked through the door, I realized I found something I’ve had all along: resilience, and the ability to work hard. The work is never done. Let’s get to it.
This is a resiliency reminder and mindset shift I need to have. In that spirit, I’m now also headed out for a run. Five miles for the future.
Singer-songwriter Mathew Sweet suffered a debilitating stroke last month while on tour in Canada. He has no medical insurance and required an ambulance transport plane with onboard medical staff to get him back to the U.S. His friends & family have created a GoFundMe to assist with the expenses.
Maria Popova shares 18 life learnings from 18 years publishing The Marginalian. This piece is full of amazing & profound insight, but this gem from learning #9 (Don’t Be Afraid To Be An Idealist) stands out to me:
Supply creates its own demand. Only by consistently supplying it can we hope to increase the demand for the substantive over the superficial — in our individual lives and in the collective dream called culture.