A vestige of an earlier time
Ep 27: Practice makes better, Dead and Company and time and space, and a nostalgic trip through the history of type.
We’re coming up fast on mid-March, which seems like madness to me. Fast? Yes. Fun? Perhaps. Thinking about spring temperatures sure sounds like fun to me. And now, a tease of something later in the newsletter. Who’s had the pleasure of typing on a typewriter?
A Tip for the Modern Worker
Practice makes you better. Did you learn something new and want to excel at it? Practice. Don't have a chance to do it yet at your day job? Take nights and weekends time to learn, practice, and refine your craft. Promise yourself you'll do it. Every day that passes with inaction creates a higher barrier to surmount. Exercise discipline and your efforts will pay off. You'll get to apply it on the job or launch yourself in a new, better direction.
This tip is one of 365 in my Handbook for the Modern Worker. I have a Computer Science degree, and as such, might traditionally be expected to develop software. I found early on that I enjoyed the user experience part of the equation at my day job, and therefore gravitated toward all things front-end: web design, information architecture, and content management. Software development took a back seat for many years but never got locked in the trunk. It was always a little noisy back there, sometimes daring to be a backseat driver. I’m glad it was because it kept me practicing software development as a freelancer. I created projects (paid and for myself) with PHP, MySQL, and pre-Xcode development using Objective C. As front-end tools evolved, I moved from Notepad to Macromedia Dreamweaver to VSCode. And as the development landscape exploded, I found myself working my way through vanilla JavaScript, jQuery, sIFR, Flash, and more recently Angular, React, and AG Grid. I learned about SSGs like Eleventy, played with maps and Leaflet, and got familiar with SVGs. I ditched Adobe for Affinity, Wordpress for Squarespace, and GoDaddy for Netlify. And guess what? Not one of those transitions happened during my 9-5. Most of the learnings, though, I was able to directly apply on the job. Head on over to my GitHub profile if you’re interested in seeing more of my personal projects.
#365DayDraw
I drew this and wrote the accompanying annotation as part of my #365DayDraw project 7 years ago today.
Home
This is the month for red-tailed hawk mating. I’m sure Cornell’s Big Red and Arthur were on my mind when I drew this, and true to form, the duo is mating and getting their nest cup ready atop a light tower near Tower Road. We’ve enjoyed following the journey for the past several spring seasons. You can follow along with the @CornellHawks Twitter account and view the live cameras on All About Birds.
Commentary
I’ve been thinking a lot about the concepts of time and space this week, all because Dead & Company announced a benefit anniversary show on May 8, 2023, at Cornell’s Barton Hall. You see, on May 8, 1977, the Grateful Dead played a historic concert in the very same place, earning Barton Hall a prominent place in Grateful Dead history. The concert was “so significant that the Library of Congress inducted it into the National Recording Registry.” It inspired a book. Fans considered the concert to be a “perfect game”, and one listen to the recording below made me feel the same way. It’s a delightful listen, and reading the comments on the video gave me a wonderful glimpse into what it was like for some concertgoers. If you’re interested, there’s a ticket lottery for the 2023 show.
But, back to time and space. You see, I’ve been running weekly in Barton Hall for the past 6 weeks. It’s easy to be in a space and only think about what’s going on in the moment. You’re in Barton because you’re doing a track workout, competing in a track meet, playing recreational basketball, participating in ROTC, or taking an exam. But take a quiet moment and glimpse up the walls choked with thick paint, your eyes will rest on the rafters and wonder what echoes of the past still linger there, undetectable to our ears but very much a vestige of an earlier time. Like that 1977 concert that, based on some commenters, left quite an impression.
I feel the same way every time I run or hike at nearby Taughannock Falls. The rocks on the ever-retreating gorge walls have been a witness to so much and will witness so much more. Those rocks have the patience to stand witness to geologic time.
Photo: ithacafingerlakes.com, Tony Ingraham of Owl Gorge Productions
I took this photo a few seasons ago from the very same spot. The crest of the waterfall is very different, but again, we’re talking about slow changes over more than a century.
It’s humbling to think about, this concept of time and space. How the current moment, the now, is infinitesimally small compared to the magnitude of things that have come before, and the enormity of things yet to come.
Miscellanea
We’re no California, but we did get about 6” of white fluffy stuff this weekend. Too little, too late, I say, since the daffodils were starting to come up. It’ll be short-lived, but it sure is beautiful.
How did you learn to type? I started on an Apple IIe but did a lot of work on my family’s typewriter, too. This fantastic typewriter simulator (an effective advert for an upcoming book) brought me right back, reminding me that backspace is really just a space that goes backward. Erasing? Well, that’s a whole different story.
Lastly, our rabbit has finally taken a liking to greens (well, a green). Kale! She’s a sucker for apples and bananas but she’s starting to really dig these hearty leafy greens.