A brief history of the first half of the 21st century
Is it worth considering?
Dear Friends,
When I started this newsletter, we were friends. There were only a handful of you, and you were mostly people I saw in real life. I was inspired to start the newsletter after coming across dozens of Christmas letters written by my great-grandparents in the 1960s and 70s. It was a treasure to discover their observations and reflections in annual letters to their friends, and I thought why not adopt a similar practice? I figured I’d occasionally share a few life updates and maybe a recommendation for a book or movie.
Unexpectedly, I discovered that I had more to say, and my writing process led me to draft more essays than life updates. I enjoyed focusing on the larger world and less on myself (today’s newsletter notwithstanding). In parallel, a lot of new subscribers joined, and while I’m not sure who you are or what brought you here, I’m mindful that this has become a different writing project than what I first envisioned.
But what is that writing project? I’m still not sure, and I’d love to hear your suggestions. One (ambitious) idea could lead to a book project: A brief history of 2000-2050. Much of my recent writing has looked back at changes over the past 25 years since I graduated from high school to imagine the next 25 years until I retire. It’s a theme that I would like to continue exploring from different angles, and I could imagine it turning into a book project for 2025 aimed at readers interested in how we prepare for 2050 based on what we have learned from changes over the last 25 years.
What do you think? Does it have traction? Would you want to keep reading? If you’d give me 10 seconds of your feedback: Which of the following posts would you be most interested in reading?
👏 Kudos: My political cousin
As of last Saturday, I now have my first cousin-in-law, Rose, after she and Ian got married outside of Pittsburgh — a city that blew away my expectations. And I learned that “cousin-in-law” in Spanish is prima política, or “political cousin.” Well, I’d vote for her.
👨👧👦 Do you care?
After the wedding, Iris flew back to San Francisco for work and I flew to Seattle to accompany my 93-year-old grandmother. At 93 (94 next week!), my grandmother is as lucid and independent as you can imagine. She still drives herself to the grocery store, and she even played in the band at the wedding! But a cross-country trip by herself would have been a bit much, and anyways it was a nice excuse to pass through Seattle and catch up with friends.
In between dinner, laughs, crying, and a water balloon fight, I learned that my friend
has started a new Substack called Gen Xandwich to explore that difficult phase of midlife when working parents (especially women) find themselves taking care of their children and their parents while seeking some meaning and joy in work and life. She already has a great post with concrete examples of what the government and private sector could do to make caring for others easier and more valued. I sense that we’re letting go of the pandemic-era hope that we’d treat child care and eldercare as “essential infrastructure for running our economy and society.” Hopefully not; I’m glad Anna’s keeping the beat going. Highly recommended!
🧰 A useful tool: The one-handed video record
A few weeks ago I covered how to zoom in and out of maps using just one hand. I’m still surprised by how few people know how to record videos using the volume buttons on their phones. Just open the camera app, and then hold down either of the volume buttons to start recording. (This works on both iPhones and Android-based phones. If you press the volume button once, it will take a photo, and if you hold it down it records video. You can also customize how these buttons take photos and record video, but I prefer the defaults.)
If you responded to the poll above, thanks. And if you have any thoughts about repurposing this thing to “A History of 2000-2050,” I’d love to hear them — either via email or in the comments below.
Have a great week!
David
Thanks for the shout! And for indulging my little water balloon warriors. I'm voting yes on the 2000-2050 book project, I can imagine coffee table style with graphs, photos and other fun time capsules (candy).