Thankyewverymuch
Appreciating the boost, plus Links of the Week: A crazy fitness record, thoughts on dogs and writing, and some gorgeous stairwell a cappella
Last week I gave a little update on the six-month anniversary of this Substack, and tried as politely as possible to work in a request for paid subscribers. A lot of y’all responded with your hard-earned dollars—more than I had expected or hoped for—and I’m deeply grateful.
This week was a bit of a rollercoaster. I was really sick on Monday and part of Tuesday … we all assumed it was COVID but I tested negative three times, so we figure it must have been something else. I think we’ve all been a little exhaustipated lately. That’s a word I found on Instagram:
Yep, that feels like the last couple of years.
But the back half of the week was much better. We had dinner with an old friend, a couple of work things turned out well, and I was reminded again of everything we ought to be thankful for.
So thanks to all of you for helping make this week, and the ones before it, better.
A quick reminder: I’m going to do an AMA (Ask Me Anything) post for paid subscribers only on Sept. 15. Ask anything you like! Any of y’all—free and paid subscribers—are welcome to ask questions. But only paid subscribers will be able to see the AMA post. I’ll be taking questions through Sept. 14. Just leave your question in the comments or reply to this post.
And while you’re at it, there’s never a bad time to upgrade to a paid subscription:
10 things I wanted to share this week:
My earlier post this week was about the thrill of finding scraps in old books.
My weekly for WFAE was about the magic of a ballgame on the radio (sort of a follow-up to last week’s post on Vin Scully).
The IRS has basically the same computer setup you had in 1998, but worse.
My friend Michael Kruse is the best political profiler in the country right now. Here he is on Raphael Warnock, trying to win a critical Senate race in Georgia.
DOG NEWS: While I work on my book, I’m devoting this slot to dog stories. This week: Margaret Renkl on why it wasn’t wrong to get a pandemic puppy.
Loved this Q&A with the B-52’s as they wind down their career on the road. Fred Schneider is a national treasure:
I’m sure some of you will never, ever get into professional wrestling, no matter how many times I link to wrestling stuff on here. But this essay about how a skilled pro turned a goofy match against Johnny Knoxville into something entertaining and magical might teach you a lot, not just about how wrestlers do what they do, but why people love it.
Speaking of strange athletic achievements, Ryan Hockensmith of ESPN really drew me into this story of a man trying to set the world record for pull-ups.
I always enjoy the By the Book feature in the New York Times, and this one with Beth Macy is one of my favorites—and not just because my interview with Beth is next week’s episode of SouthBound.
Take this with you into the weekend: Some of the most beautiful harmonies I’ve heard, from the Dallas group Kings Return. I suspect Michael Jackson would’ve enjoyed this.
See y’all next week, everyone.
Off-topic, but I'm reading Ed Southern's "Fight Songs" right now. It's the Festival Read for On The Same Page this year, and as I read it I'm remembering how much we all enjoyed your participation in OTSP a few years ago. And this book reminds me of yours; hope you've read it, too!
I loved your book and was delighted to find you on Substack. You have an engaging, comfortable writing style that draws me in and I love the endless variety of your subject matter. When I get your weekly newsletter it's like a bit of a journey from one interesting topic to another some of which bring back great memories like your favorite farm stand and the holy trinity of peaches, corn and tomatoes. And what's not to love about tomato sandwiches or fried green tomatoes? Another favorite is the dead possum blues and now when I do something I've been putting off I say I'm taking the possum to the curb. Also, you've given me a totally new view of the Westminster dog show. I love dogs and I've always viewed the Westminster dog show as worse than a beauty pageant - not only do the dogs have to meet some sort of exacting standards but their bodies get manhandled during the judging process! Also, I was under the impression that you had to have lots of money to end up at Westminster. My view started to change after watching "7 days out" on Netflix which just happened to coincide with your articles about Westminster. My sister used to own a Bloodhound so I was rooting for Trumpet and he definitely had what it took to win. I am so happy to support your work by being a paid subscriber and I wish you continued success.