{"id":506,"date":"2018-02-07T03:26:28","date_gmt":"2018-02-07T07:26:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.aligncenter.org\/?p=506"},"modified":"2018-02-20T21:55:51","modified_gmt":"2018-02-21T01:55:51","slug":"newsletter-23","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.aligncenter.org\/newsletter-23\/","title":{"rendered":"Newsletter #23"},"content":{"rendered":"

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\"\"Inspiration for aspiring artists, photographers challenging Middle East stereotypes, and a photo essay are some of the highlights in this issue. We also have a podcast recommendation from a polarizing figure that’s sure to make you think and reflect, a long read on a gathering of van lifers, and four things I’m digging lately. Finally, we end with a personal update from a recently transformative experience.<\/p>\n

\u25e6 selected words<\/h1>\n

Want to Be An Artist? Watch Groundhog Day<\/a><\/h2>\n

Last Friday was Groundhog Day, where many dusted off the old DVD player and loaded up the 1993 classic comedy starring Bill Murray. Austin Kleon, artist and author of one of my favorite newsletters, sums up the movie and its existential questions under the lens of becoming an artist, with inspiration for anyone swaying off the path to persist and continue the creative journey.
\nAustin Kleon (8min read)<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

How to Learn to Draw is About Learning to Learn<\/a><\/h2>\n

So you want to draw. You buy some art supplies, mash out some sketches that look like you just learned to write the alphabet, and you inevitably get discouraged. Or maybe you’ve been drawing for a while, but never felt confident with your stroke. Where do you go from here? This excellent piece gives real yet unconventional advice addressing unrealistic comparisons, learning to learn, progress, and struggle.
\nDanny Gregory (6min read)<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

The Photographers Challenging Middle East Stereotypes<\/a><\/h2>\n

Living two years in the Middle East and frustrated by how nations in the region were portrayed in media, photojournalist Lindsay McKenzie responds in a beautiful way \u2014 creating “Everyday Middle East”, a photo project to challenge stereotypes.
\nCNN (3min read)<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

Inside One of America\u2019s Last Pencil Factories<\/a><\/h2>\n

A photo essay with amazing shots of the manufacturing process at The General Pencil Company, producing pencils since 1889. The photos are simply stunning and are like a trip back in time.
\nThe New York Times Magazine (3min read)<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

The Making of Blue Planet 2’s Deep Ocean Episode<\/a><\/h2>\n

I’m still obsessed with Blue Planet, and probably one of the last people in this email list to have watched it. If you didn’t get enough from the Behind the Scenes clip, science writer Ed Yong asks the lead producer how her team managed the atmospheric lighting, and scientific firsts including the lake at the bottom of the ocean (you read that right) and the first recorded whale fall. Hint: she has 250 scientists regularly emailing her cool ideas to shoot.
\nThe Atlantic (9min read)<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

\u25e6 listen in<\/h1>\n

Jordan B. Peterson on the Joe Rogan Experience #1070<\/a><\/h2>\n

A viral video is circulating of the controversy magnet, clinical psychologist and professor at the University of Toronto, after a debate on Channel 4 News where he was bombarded with attacks by the interviewer. As an unfazed Peterson points out, the more people attack him, the more he benefits. Making media appearances to promote his new book, 12 Rules for Life: An Antidote to Chaos, JBP is one to pay attention to for the way he articulates cultural issues of our time. And yesterday, The Globe & Mail wrote an article “How Awful is Jordan Peterson, Anyways”<\/a>, an op-ed on whether his position as a leading intellectual and thought leader is in line with his recent popularity (and financial success). The 1h28m-1hr40m section on a Biblical translation of meekness and being against competition is well articulated. I’ll probably receive flak from posting this, as he elicits strong feelings, but I’m open to dialog.
\nJoe Rogan Experience podcast on YouTube (2hr28min podcast)<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

\u25e6 eat well<\/h1>\n

An Indian American’s Take on Golden Milk<\/a><\/h2>\n

Over the last two years, turmeric milk, traditionally known as “haldi doodh” but lately marketed as “turmeric latte” or “golden milk”, spread to hip caf\u00e9s and wellness blogs like wildfire. The author shares what the “elixir” means to her, growing up in America. Her recipe is as simple as it gets (microwave warning).
\nTaste Cooking<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

\u25e6 read slow<\/h1>\n

On the Road Again, and Again, and Again<\/a><\/h2>\n

For two weeks, on several acres of federal land next to Quartzsite, Arizona, what’s sometimes called Burning Man for retirees takes place. This annual free gathering of converted delivery trucks, RV’s, and “Skoolies”, has another thing in common \u2014 a distaste for consumerist society. Dubbed the Rubber Tramp Rendezvous, or RTR for short, nomads, retirees, minimalists living out of Prius’, and a YouTube star are among those that make the drive to share tips on living on the road and to share a temporary feeling of community from many who would call themselves introverts.
\nThe New York Times (14min read)<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

\u25e6 current read<\/h1>\n

The Stars My Destination<\/a><\/h2>\n

I haven’t read a book since the last issue, but as a tribute to SpaceX’s almost-perfect launch of the Falcon Heavy today, I’ll recommend one of my favorites that Neil Gaiman called “the perfect cyberpunk novel”, written 17 years before Blade Runner. Widely considered one of the top sci-fi novels of all-time, Alfred Bester’s The Stars My Destination has it all \u2014 a telepath, radioactive hitmen, an evil millionaire, enlightenment, and an albino who sees infra-red \u2014 packed into 258 pages. A film has been in the works for years, but it’s been said it’s almost unfilmable.
\nThe Stars My Destination by Alfred Bester, 1955 (258p book)<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

\u25e6 dig this<\/h1>\n

What I’m digging lately:<\/p>\n