Saturday beer: The Bruery’s Partridge in a Pear Tree ⭐️⭐️⭐️ tasty, solid quad. here’s to the new year 🍺

new post: Reading Goals, in which I declare victory on the common “I should read more” resolution

read: Neil Postman’s Amusing Ourselves to Death. though written 40 years ago, long before the internet, let alone social networks, this short book is profound and eye-opening. took me a while to get into it, but well worth it 📚

this, from a social epidemiologist predicting post-pandemic life, is what I’ve been thinking, too. maybe streaming services won’t kill movie theaters, after all

This future, Christakis predicts, will not come until society has had time to distribute the vaccine… But the vision he lays out for 2024 and beyond is one filled with experiences pined for in isolation: packed stadiums, crowded nightclubs and flourishing arts.

slowly making my way through Postman’s amazing Amusing Ourselves to Death. On the bombardment of isolated “news” stories from around the world:

You may get a sense of what this means by asking yourself another series of questions: What steps do you plan to take to reduce the conflict in the Middle East? Or the rates of inflation, crime, and unemployment? What are your plans for preserving the environment or reducing the risk of nuclear war? What do you plan to do about NATO… the CIA…? I shall take liberty of answering for you: You plan to do nothing about them.

You may, of course, cast a ballot for someone who claims to have some plans, as well as the power to act. But this you can do only once every two or four years by giving one hour of your time, hardly a satisfying means of expressing the broad range of opinions you hold. Voting, we might even say, is the next to last refuge of the politically impotent.

The last refuge, of course, is giving your opinion to a pollster, who will get a version of it through a desiccated question, and then submerge it in a Niagara of similar opinions, and convert them into – what else? – another piece of news. Thus, we have here a great loop of impotence: The news elicits from you a variety of opinions about which you can do nothing except to offer them as more news, about which you can do nothing.

holiday movie-time continues: 🎥 watched Serendipity last night (not my favorite but my wife loves it; gotta like Cusack, too), and Netflix’s Klaus tonight, which was really nice. a very different Schwartzman character than we’ve been watching in Fargo S4 😆

Saturday beer: Buffalo Bayou Brewing’s Feliz Navidad ⭐️⭐️⭐️ The ancho chile isn’t a flavor I’d want all the time, but it’s good tonight 🍺

the whole family watched Die Hard tonight, a first for all of us. well written, funny, and clever. verdict: yep, it’s a Christmas movie 🎥

finished Maus II: A Survivor’s Tale: And Here My Troubles Began, by Art Spiegelman 📚

presenting the uncontested winner of Best Original Holiday Song of 2020 (emphasis on “2020”): It’s Christmas and I F*cking Miss You by Charly Bliss & PUP 🎵

a live script read of Elf with all the main stars, and it raises money for the Georgia senate race, too? Sold! (today, 12/13 at 3PM CT) [updated with fixed link]

finished Pilgrim at Tinker Creek by Annie Dillard today 📚 what a staggering work. lyrically written, much of it more like poetry than prose, her view of nature probing its ruthless violence as much as its unbelievable beauty. I’ll be rereading this for sure. maybe annually

watched Beastie Boys Story tonight 🎥 it was uniquely done, the narration by Diamond & Horovitz performed in front of a live audience, with video clips projected behind them. we were big fans at the time of the first two albums; there’s a lot of music I need to catch up on

our movies this weekend were two old classics, though from very different eras and styles. last night: Pulp Fiction (1994), tonight: Vertigo (1958) 🎥

Tonight’s Saturday beer is Goose Island Beer Co.’s Bourbon County Special #4 Stout (2020) ⭐️⭐️⭐️ First bottle from this year’s Bourbon County haul, it is silky smooth and just delish-delosh (a perfect phrase we learned from GBBS) 🍺

watched the new Shane MacGowan movie Crock of Gold. I don’t know the Pogues’ music as well as my wife, though I may have to change that. movie was uniquely done for a rockstar biopic: hard to watch and tragic at times, but fascinating 🎥

I struggled with some of the Microblogvember prompts, but I made it (I think). it was a fun exercise, and I’m hoping to continue posting more regularly even when there’s not a little game to reinforce the habit #mbnov

we go for morning walks on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. but the forecast says 36°, so I won’t be a pedestrian tomorrow #mbnov

the last 1,000-piece jigsaw puzzle we’ll do for a while

I’ve reached a kind of normal with wearing a mask in stores. it’s regular enough that I don’t forget it anymore, but still awkward (and regularly steams up my glasses). shopping is even less fun than ever, guess I’m glad we can do it at all #mbnov

Saturday night beer: Brazos Valley Brewing’s Slippin’ Into Darkness ⭐️⭐️__

tonight’s movie: Stuber. not bad for an action-comedy. the leads were both pretty good, Kumail Nanjiani especially is always fun to watch 🎥

we faced a serious dilemma earlier, but we solved it by just ordering two pizzas #mbnov

Tombo

watched Murder on the Orient Express (2017). nobody but David Suchet will ever be the real Poirot, but the cast was star-studded (Rey! Queen Elizabeth!) and it was fun (and I didn’t know whodunnit) 🎥

it’s too easy to adjust to a long, sleeping-in weekend. grateful for many things, including tomorrow still only being Friday #mbnov

this last workday before the holiday was marred by some hosting issues (surprise! the cloud has outages, too!), but it was beautiful if only because there were no meetings to call into #mbnov

I’m not sure if we have all the holiday meal ingredients on hand, but I know my beer provisions are all set for the weekend #mbnov

my recommendation for some good tunes this Tuesday: Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings' Just Dropped In to See What Condition My Rendition Was In. posthumous releases can be exploitative but this collection of covers is great 🎵

youtu.be/lWaKjzh0p…

our doorbell camera captured this predawn visitor (and labeled it “person detected”) #mbnov

did some long-overdue weeding outside this morning, almost catching up on the green invaders along the border of our patio area. think I might try working a little on this never-ending task during work meetings; I can listen just as well while mindlessly pulling weeds #mbnov

Saturday’s beer: Einstök Ölgerð’s Icelandic Winter Ale ⭐️⭐️⭐️ did I pick this to drink tonight just because “winter” is today’s #mbnov word? maybe

Friday at last, and not a day too soon. my energy and patience have really started to fade at the end of this week #mbnov

how is it possible that November’s more than half gone, Thanksgiving is a week away, and it’ll be December any minute? time flying isn’t new but this year it’s truly, truly ridiculous #mbnov

imagine what a day it will be, once we can break our dependence on fossil fuels and make the huge shift to renewable energy. it won’t be easy, but it will be worth it (some of these #mbnov words are tough, man)

I think I’d love to take a long journey by train someday (not anytime soon, obviously). big, roomy sleeper cars, watching the landscape chug by. maybe it would amount to little more than a longer, slightly less cramped plane trip, but it sounds great to me. #mbnov

I often feel like I have a poor memory. and then I think maybe I’d see improvement by slowing down, paying more careful attention to things. only I always forget to do that. #mbnov

we didn’t go far, but we had a nice (belated) anniversary weekend away. she’s put up with me for this long, I guess we’re in it for good. #mbnov

Saturday beer: Martin House Brewing’s Colombiana (“Rum Barrel-Aged Imperial Stout with Cherries and Coconut”) ⭐️⭐️⭐️ Has a slight aftertaste, but it tastes so much like a Mounds bar that I can’t complain (and it’s 14.5% so that’s quickly reducing complaints, too) 🍺

spending the night on the 36th floor of a fancy downtown hotel for our anniversary. last time I noticed this block it was a gravel parking lot. spooky. #mbnov

I guess musicians are getting better at livestream concerts. watched Martha Wainwright tonight & it was great: low-key, but video & audio were excellent. a far cry from the crude Facebook streams bands started with last spring. not as good as live, but nice 🎵 #mbnov

it’s happened a day or two already, but the time is coming soon when I won’t be able to wear shorts and t-shirts every day. sad but true #mbnov

the people have had their say, it’s (past) time to abide by it #mbnov

dug back in to Bruce Tate’s Seven Languages in Seven Weeks today, after setting it aside. next language was Io. looks interesting, but gave up trying to install it after ~30 minutes. I’ll just read the text, nbd, but hitting these kinds of obstacles makes me feel elderly #mbnov

it’s been tougher than I expected, but I think I’m glad Microblogvember is forcing me to post every day #mbnov

I started Annie Dillard’s Pilgrim at Tinker Creek yesterday, a first-edition copy from a used bookstore in Buena Vista CO. from the printing on the spine it seems that the binding is upside down. wonder if this might make it rare or valuable, like stamps with errors? 📚 #mbnov

Saturday’s beer: The Bruery’s So Happens It’s Tuesday ⭐️⭐️⭐️ actually feels like it’s the first day this week that isn’t Tuesday, amirite? this is my election victory beer, & though that victory didn’t reach us in Texas, I’m elated, relieved, and man this tastes good 🍺

having a good time following reactions to today’s election news online. the national mood is soaring like a balloon inflated with helium #mbnov

that previous RT post didn’t convey my mood very well, which is much more HELLLLL YEEEAAAHHH! 🇺🇸🍺🎉🍾💥 beyond happy that we all finally know that Trump’s days in office are numbered. going to get very drunk tonight

Lovett:

Under extraordinary circumstances, against an incumbent president abusing his office and propped up by a massive propaganda and disinformation machine, Joe Biden and Kamala Harris did it. Their campaign did it. We all did it.

puzzling over the seemingly simple question, “now what?” in several areas of my life #mbnov

as my Dad got on in years and his posture worsened, he would often joke about how he was looking a little “stooped” (pronouncing it with a hard “ed”: “stupid”) #mbnov #dadjokes

the Observer: Texas Democrats Thought 2020 Would Be a Banner Year. Instead, It Was a Catastrophe.

Republicans will now lock in their majority for years to come

I invested a lot in this fight, but I think I might be done

yesterday I thought the US and Texas were near a big political shift. today I’m far from being able to understand how so many people can be such fools. just, stunned #mbnov

some upbeat new tunes for this long-awaited Tuesday: Joan Osborne’s Trouble and Strife. standout track (and big election mood): Take It Any Way I Can Get It. 🎵

the astonishing election result four years ago brought me into activism and #resistance with a lot of other good folks. today we strike a blow against Trump and the Republicans who enabled him #mbnov

looking forward to days that are more calm, less fraught, and which will allow me to better concentrate #mbnov

it’s a truly beautiful Sunday, but between a rough headache and mounting election anxiety, I’m feeling pretty dreary on this first day of Microblogvember #mbnov

Saturday’s beer: 903 Brewing’s Dracaryus ⭐️⭐️__ You can taste the chile! Not that it’s hot, or is something I want in my beer every time, but it’s in there, all right! 🍺

new tunes for your Tuesday: Juana Molina’s first live album came out last week: ANRMAL - Live in México. I’ve been a fan of hers for years, I think it’s great. hope you like it, too. Eras is as good a track to start with as any (ooh, here’s video of that performance) 🎵

neither Biden nor Harris was my pick during the primary, but today I voted for them so hard it almost cracked the touchscreen. once they’re in office we can keep them honest & push them further. but step #1 is getting them there. don’t skip, & don’t throw away your vote

Saturday beer: Fair State Brewing’s Heckin’ Chonker ⭐️⭐️⭐️ the cute name & can design accompany a deliciously sweet and slightly boozy stout. excellent. 🍺

at last: today is mail day for VoteFwd! we prepared a couple hundred of the 16 million (!!) letters, & I’m proud to have also contributed code to their web app, including the backend support for today’s announcement message! #TheBigSend

this city council election mailer we got today, omg. this fool thinks the BLM protests – just those! not even violence or “rioting” related to them! – is a sign that Austin is somehow worse off than 4 years ago. (not to mention the other dumb examples.) infuriating.

“new” tunes for your Tuesday: some thrashy punk rock from Screaming Females: 2018’s All At Once. recommended track: Agnes Martin. turn off the news, and turn this up 🎵

astounding: Bar-tailed godwit flies more than 12,000km from Alaska to New Zealand in 11 days

It is not certain but it is believed the birds do not sleep on the journey during which they flap their wings most of the time. “They have an incredibly efficient fuel-to-energy rate.”

yay! the special Super Rooster Tournament of Champion Books is starting (boo! it snuck up on me before I could read The Road) 📚

today only, $20.20 gets you 77 (!) tracks from a whole bunch of cool bands (& a bunch I’ve never heard of before, tbh), plus contributes to Voting Rights Lab: Good Music to Avert the Collapse of American Democracy, Volume 2 🎵

this adorable little band from The Netherlands had an adorable little concert livestream from the UK this week, and it was great. I want to go back to cool, funky little clubs and see cool, funky little bands! 😭 Anyway. Boat by Pip Blom; start with Ruby. 🎵

Nathan J. Robinson, in The Guardian:

When you look at your own tax bill, understand that it could be lower if super-wealthy people like Trump weren’t trying to shift the burden onto everyone else. You paid for Trump’s $73m tax refund and he’s laughing all the way to the bank.

Saturday beer: Orkney Brewery’s Skull Splitter ⭐️⭐️__ Pretty tasty, though I’ll admit to picking this up mainly because of the Thorfinn Einarsson reference on the label, after reading Vinland Saga 🍺

Saturday beer: Chateau 903 Brewers’ Chateau 903 ⭐️⭐️⭐️ Tasty; a stout aged in wine barrels is an interesting one. And if Untapped is right, the only beer they make?? 🍺

“RT” @TVietor08:

Fuck this guy. Mitch McConnell is a lying, craven hack who only respects power. Our Get Mitch Or Die Trying fund will split your donation between 13 Democrats running for Senate so that McConnell is no longer in charge. Rage donating > rage tweeting

with apologies to jwz (and regular expressions, for that matter)

Some people, when confronted with a problem, think "I know, I'll Dockerize everything.” Now they have [at least] two problems.

feeling proud lately that my subscriptions help support the good work of The Atlantic and The Guardian. 46 days

Saturday beer: Clown Shoes’ The Good, the Bad, & the Unidragon ⭐️⭐️⭐️ not usually a big Clown Shoes fan – they just make styles I’m not into – but this is all right 🍺

Maciej Cegłowski makes the case for smaller, local races being more worthwhile of your attention & contributions, even as the presidential race dominates media coverage day after day (after day after day). and the sooner, the better

Saturday beer: (512) Brewing Company’s Whiskey Barrel Aged Double Pecan Porter ⭐️⭐️ __ saved this for the holiday weekend, and it was… fine. (that is, a little disappointing vs. how special I’d imagined it would be.) 🍺

O! Mine ass, I have laugheth it off

Multiple boats sink in Texas lake at pro-Trump water parade

here’s hoping the latest scandal hurts Trump’s campaign as much as it should. meanwhile, there are a dozen other races closer to you, that you can make a bigger difference in (for example, here in TX). channel your outrage, anxiety, and money to those.

(psst, it’s Bandcamp Friday again today. support the musicians who still can’t tour yet!) 🎵

I am almost a little too excited about The Tournament of Books’ Super Rooster. not least because I’ve actually read some of these (due mainly to past ToBs) 📚

new tunes for your Tuesday: Future Me Hates Me, by a new favorite band of mine, The Beths. standout track: You Wouldn’t Like Me. props once again to the Sound Opinions podcast for the tip. 🎵

Saturday beer: Avery Brewing’s The Reverend ⭐️⭐️⭐️ a superb quadrupel. 🍺

thanks to these handy instructions from @jamesvandyne, my personal site(s) are now running on renewable energy in Digital Ocean’s Frankfurt datacenter 🌱

loved seeing the news that Powell’s won’t sell through Amazon anymore (no direct link; see the August 26 message). showed my support by ordering a couple books from them today. one new & one from their great used selection 📚

finished Home Before Dark (Apple TV+) this weekend, it was good. the 9-year-old investigative journalist is based on a real person, though the story itself isn’t. A good mystery drama; we’re looking forward to season 2 someday.

Hopsquad Brewing’s Sculptor Formosa ⭐️ ⭐️ __ #saturdaybeer 🍺

when the pandemic struck I put my fairly souped-up (company-provided) MacBook Pro to work doing Folding@home computations. glad I did, but between the fan noise, heat, & wear on the machine, I decided to stop once I got to a million “points”

is it Bandcamp Friday yet? (yes, for 12 more hours, Bandcamp will pass along their cut to artists, who dearly need it since they can’t tour) 🎵

emphasizing the “new” in New Tunes Tuesday is figurative, this week’s pick is Are You Experienced? by the Jimi Hendrix Experience. yes it has a bunch of mega-hits you’ve been sick of for years but it’s just really good. give a listen to I Don’t Live Today, loud as you want 🎵

new post: The Fox, in which we have a visitor (it came again this morning; seems to be searching for the best nap spot)

this “new” tunes Tuesday, I give you last year’s surprise reunion album from Vivian Girls: Memory (Spotify, Bandcamp). standout track: At It Again, then just let it go from there 🎵

beyond excited to finally have our season tickets (ahem, “membership”) bought for the inaugural Austin FC season next year! this pic shows our approximated view! (now shove off, COVID) ⚽️

Clown Shoes’ El Hombre Sin Nombre ⭐️⭐️__ #saturdaybeer 🍺

hey, it’s Tuesday! my new-tunes recommendation: Sad13’s Slugger. the solo project of Speedy Ortiz’s Sadie Dupuis, this will hold you over until her new album is out in September. standout track: Line Up. (bonus: her site’s URL sad13.horse) 🎵

feeing pretty called out by this 😬 Gentle Whisper Of Wind Through Willows, Dappling Of Sunlight Upon Leaves Unsure What More They Have To Do To Make Dipshit Look Up From Phone

puts down phone

Riff Raff Brewing’s El Duende Verde Chili Beer ⭐️⭐️⭐️ #sundaybeer 🍺

Vacation rental view Pagosa Springs, Colorado

Echo Amphitheatre, Carson National Forest, New Mexico

take it from me, a t-shirt connoisseur (I used to be pro, in fact): these are good t-shirts. inexpensive for the quality you’ll get from Cotton Bureau, and a fundraiser to boot? done

for this week’s new tunes Tuesday allow me to introduce you to Porridge Radio and their fine debut, Every Bad. standout track: Sweet 🎵

hi, this pregame picture of Chicago Red Stars and USWNT players Julie Ertz and Casey Short wrecked me, okay, good night.

(photo: NWSL) ⚽️

“Liverpool are now champions of Europe, champions of the world, and champions of England” - Arlo White, on the Reds clinching the title earlier in the season than anyone ever has ⚽️

I love Bandcamp, and was really happy to learn that they’re doing well financially. dear Bandcamp: keep slow-burning and never sell out

another Tuesday, another “new” tunes recommendation - it’s a beautiful rainy morning here, how about the latest from Torres, Silver Tongue? “Last Forest” is a good track 🎵

surprise visitor on the in-laws’ patio, very calmly removed, carried by broom, and tossed into the lot across the street

happy Juneteenth! treat yourself to some new tunes 🎵 from Bandcamp and support racial justice, equality, & change:

today… and every Juneteenth hereafter, for any purchase you make on Bandcamp, we will be donating 100% of our share of sales to the NAACP Legal Defense Fund

Adelbert’s Brewery’s Flyin’ Monks ⭐️⭐️⭐️ #saturdaybeer 🍺

saw this new (!) Tiny Desk Concert with the cast & musicians of Hadestown, so what the heck, let’s have that be New Tunes Tuesday. the performances in that video are good, but my real pick is the Anaïs Mitchell album their show is based on, also called Hadestown 🎵

see you downtown

NRA Accidentally Forgets To Rise Up Against Tyrannical Government

“An embarrassed National Rifle Association says it totally forgot to do the one thing it has been saying for years it is solely there to do.”

h/t @toddgrotenhuis

McSweeney’s: Upholding White Supremacy with Past Exonerative Tense

[This] tense transforms acts of police brutality against Black people into neutral events in which Black people have been accidentally harmed or killed as part of a vague incident where police were present-ish

my laptop crashed

Goose Island Brewing’s Bourbon County Coffee Stout (2017) ⭐️⭐️⭐️ #memorialdaybeer 🇺🇸🍺

BookSpring, a wonderful charity I volunteer for, needs to raise money to send books by mail to needy kids who would have gotten them this Spring through schools, clinics, & daycare centers. so they’re holding a charity raffle. pitch in, and maybe win! 📚

that copy of The City We Became that I ordered the other day from Austin’s beloved BookPeople came today. flipping through, I discovered that it’s a signed copy! there’s something that will never happen when you shop from Amazon 📚

good Jenny Odell interview:

Q. …these days, we’re all almost on the hook to have something to say about everything as soon as it happens.

A. Yeah. I find there to be something a little bit profane about that, given what’s happening right now.

Tuesday, time for new tunes! you may have had this recommended by a hundred people lately, but they’re all right: Fiona Apple’s Fetch the Bolt Cutters. standout track: Shameika. 🎵

just ordered the first book for this summer’s Camp TOB: The City We Became by N. K. Jemisin. I haven’t done a group book club like this before; little worried that time pressure will make it less fun. but going to give it a shot & read some books I otherwise wouldn’t! 📚

Novel Progress, 5/17/20 - in which writing resumes and critiques continue

that FT Times article you should read:

Trump will continue to dangle the prospect of miracle cures. Every week since the start of the outbreak, he has said a vaccine is just around the corner… The previous fastest development was four years for mumps in the 1960s.

4th Tap Brewing’s Supernaut ⭐️⭐️__ #saturdaybeer 🍺

A video suggestion for New Tunes Tuesday this week: a live performance from the hallowed KEXP studio: Wussy, from July 2014. this way you can see the gang in action, including pedal steel guitarist John Erhardt (RIP). standout track: the first one, Teenage Wasteland 🎵

no commencement for our daughter’s college graduation (not that she was very excited to attend anyway). this pic from her Animal Crossing self-celebration, complete with correct UNT colors, will do

Goose Island Brewing’s Bourbon County Stout (2016) ⭐️⭐️⭐️ #saturdaybeer 🍺 this bottle, given by chance to me by her uncle last year, has been waiting to be opened since our daughter started college. today she’s a graduate, and we couldn’t be more proud

McSweeney’s: Sure, the Velociraptors Are Still On the Loose, But That’s No Reason Not to Reopen Jurassic Park

And keeping things just below widespread public outrage levels is our gold standard for all of the decisions we make here at Jurassic Park.

New Tunes Tuesday: Signal by Automatic. a debut with as solid of post-punk jams as I’ve heard in a while. standout track: I Love You, Fine 🎵

New Tunes Tuesday: Space Cadet by beabadoobee. music as fun & cool as the artist’s name. standout track: Sun More Often 🎵

a really niche thing but I couldn’t figure it out for ages, until today! Smart Playlist rules are interpreted differently in the Mac and iOS Music apps. “genre is not classical”, for example, includes tracks with no genre specified on MacOS, but omits them on iOS!

Celis Brewery’s Violet Crown Quad ⭐️⭐️⭐️ #saturdaybeer 🍺 (They were out of labels so the bottles were signed by the owner, Christine Celis.)

Adelbert’s Brewery’s Tripel Treat ⭐️⭐️__ #saturdaybeer 🍺

Austin Beerworks’ Blonde Joke Golden Stout ⭐️⭐️__ #saturdaybeer 🍺

4th Tap Brewing’s Bat Country Stout w/Wild Gift Cold Brew ⭐️__ __ (shown: pandemic-era crowler without the real label; this was a little more smoky/porter than I’d like) #wednesdaybeer 🍺

Austin Beerworks‘ Gold Fist ⭐️⭐️__ #saturdaybeer 🍺

local breweries are still open for beer-to-go, so I decided to do my part by supporting five of them (Adelbert’s, Austin Beerworks, Celis, 4th Tap, & Circle). Prost! 🍺

backyard

Deschutes Brewing’s The Abyss (2019) ⭐️__ __ #saturdaybeer 🍺

Rogue Ales’ Dead ‘N’ Dead ⭐️⭐️__ #fridaybeer 🍺 After waiting in line like shopping at HEB is an amusement park ride, I just couldn’t resist this name

Bandcamp Supporting Artists Affected by Pandemic – in which you’re encouraged to buy some great new music for yourself, and directly support musicians who can’t tour for a while 🎵

these free nightly opera streams from the Met are really good. bonus points for their app on Apple, Amazon, and Roku (no account or login needed, just select “free preview” to watch the day’s freebie in its entirety) 🎵

awakened before the alarm clock by our smoke detectors blaring for a few seconds. better at 6:00 than at 3:00 or 4:00, but being jolted from deep sleep like that is never how I want to start the day. it stopped as suddenly as it started. dust? a tiny spider, now deaf?

Martin House Brewing’s The Morrigan ⭐️⭐️⭐️ #saturdaybeer 🍺

Lakewood Brewing’s Bourbon Barrel Temptress ⭐️⭐️⭐️ #saturdaybeer 🍺

unsurprisingly blistering reaction to yesterday’s impeachment outcome from press around the world:

Trump, his followers and the majority of the Republicans are, together and wilfully, breaking down the foundations of democracy.

Starting to Get Feedback - in which I let anyone else in the world read a word of what I’ve been writing for four years, and live to tell the tale (pun very much intended)

Brouwerij Van Steenberge’s Gulden Draak Imperial Stout (2018) 🍺 ⭐️⭐️⭐️

if you’re unhappy about the damage Senate Republicans are doing to our democracy, please consider doing something besides tweeting or blogging about it. sign up, pitch in $10, $25, or whatever you can. these nine deserve to pay the price in November.

Julia Ioffe says what I’ve wondered:

At any point during this process, Bolton could have just come forward and said what he knew. In front of the House, on TV, in an Op-Ed, anywhere. Instead, he's doing what so many retiring Republicans do: the barest, coyest minimum to preserve a patina of credibility but without alienating the vast system of GOP money they rely on in retirement.

also I finished my most recent editing pass of my novel (and have had a few drinks) so I’ve put an invitation to read an early draft on my site, ok bye

Boulevard Brewing’s Tasting Room: Whiskey & Cabernet Cask Imperial Stout ⭐️⭐️⭐️ #saturdaybeer 🍺

been writing on another blog, ⚽️ news in & around Austin. it was kinda micro.blogged for a while, but not really working that way, so I think I’ll post them here, too:

Austin Bold schedule, Austin FC ticket speculation, and USWNT coming to Texas – it's 2020, and it's Stoppage Time

First Third Thursday in the Writers’ League - in which I leave the safe confines of home, daring to venture out there and meet other real, live writer people

rest in peace, Christopher Tolkien. I’m sure I’ve read more of J.R.R.’s writing, thanks to Christopher’s beyond-painstaking editing & publishing, than the original trilogy (plus) combined. 📚

Manhattan Project Beer Co’s Wise Monkey ⭐️⭐️⭐️ #saturdaybeer 🍺

even tigers need belly rubs

Great Divide Brewing’s Barrel Aged Yeti ⭐️⭐️⭐️ #saturdaybeer 🍺

a new year, a new media log page (and a spot for the 2019 log)