And Now, A Moment of Clarity
Travel days, putting down the phone and a summer reading list.
This past week I hopped a flight cross country to drive a new vehicle around Napa County(more on that soon) and while in transit I found myself unusually sucked into my phone. Anytime I was waiting, out it came, in I went. The repetitiveness of it suddenly hit me and the best I can describe it is that I felt “icky”. I’d become as predictable in the real world as I am within the algorithms that govern our digital landscapes. The majority of my life I’ve taken pride in keeping people guessing about what I’ll do next and what I’m interested in. This felt like I was a tidy little data point on some nefarious spreadsheet.
In the words of so many illustrious thinkers, Fuck. That.
I’ve been traveling solo since the days of being an “unaccompanied minor” and was fascinated by liminal spaces right from the start. Before smartphones were ubiquitous and even in the early days of cellphones, airports were their own realm. Everyone going somewhere, doing something, cut off from their usual routine, I loved observing it. I’d grab a couple magazines or have a book on hand, and pass the time before and between flights sort of reading, mostly observing. There are few places where the full spectrum of humanity is on display than an airport.
These days domestic airports and flights are much less of the liminal spaces they once were due to the availability of complete connectivity. It’s hard to resist, although generally I eschew headphones when in the airport and don’t connect to WiFi if it’s available on flights. I’ll take a break from “the noise” that’s coming at us 24/7 whenever I can get it. However, sometimes there’s literal noise that I definitely am better off not hearing and in the AirPods go. Sometimes I won’t even hit play, I’ll just walk around with them in, a clear sign that if it’s conversation you’re after, I’d rather not. To think I was once the kid who was eager to find out where a person was going, what they did for a living and anything else I could glean about them whilst we both occupied a reality where 9am cocktails aren’t out of the ordinary.
Surely some of the change is just due to getting older, but I can’t help wondering how much the portal to the totality of human existence that fits in my pocket has to do with the shift to traveling consumer vs traveling observer. Far more people are becoming acutely aware of how brainfucked “the youths” are due to smartphones and the cancerous social media apps that operate on them, thanks to the good work of people like Jonathan Haidt. It’s not just young people who have a problem with being disconnected from reality though. I catch myself and plenty of millennials (and older generations) pontificating on problems kids have because of technology, while spending far too much time on the phone ourselves. I guess the difference is we’re more mature(at least biologically) and can recognize there’s a problem even if we don’t always adjust our behavior. I was particularly bad about not doing so while traveling this past week. Too many things to know about, so much to catch up on. Come on man.
I repeatedly had my phone in hand scrolling Instagram when I could have been reading a book or a magazine. Sure, most of the time I was listening to one podcast or another, ostensibly learning something while scrolling, but that’s a poor excuse. So consider this newsletter a moment of clarity. It has inspired me to make a renewed commitment to listening to music and reading physical paper while traveling. Perhaps on some occasions I’ll even have the constitution to sit and simply do nothing but observe and let my mind wander. A great deal of good has come from doing that in my life, probably a good idea to incorporate more of it again.
If there’s a downside to all of this it’s that “real life” can be awful. I understand the need for escapism as well as the desire to isolate oneself, but ultimately I’ve always found that the bullshit always finds a way to creep into your sphere of awareness. There’s a reason tech and media companies prioritize bad news, it’s engaging. More engagement, more anger, more money for them. To combat this as best I can I’ve turned to books big and small about civilization. Nothing has helped me to better understand the recent past and reframe the present, not to mention feel more optimistic about the future, than delving into history.
It has helped me make sense my own life experience, as well as that of each generation walking the earth right now. What’s that old saying? “History doesn’t repeat itself, but it rhymes”? Yeah, that hits home more with every passing year. I’ve also found that a byproduct of reading these types of books is the freeing of yourself from the notion of having to have a broad impact on society. Few people do and that’s OK. You don’t have to have an opinion on whatever the current “thing” is in the cultural zeitgeist, nor should you worry about doing something about it. I’m not saying you ought to shy away from making the world a better place in some capacity, but if you really want to be a force for good, focus on the people closest to you. The most important social movements in history started small and grew organically. Don’t despair if whatever you’re putting energy into remains small either. It’s not about the recognition, it’s about the work. Right?
If you need some sort of reward or validation in your life, I get it. We’re only human after all. In elementary school I always participated in a summer reading program that partnered with a local candy and ice cream shop. The concept was simple, read a certain number of books, get free chocolates and ice cream. I already liked reading, I really liked ice cream, and I tore through the reading lists. So if it helps, reward yourself for reading. Maybe it’s opening a nice bottle of wine or taking yourself out to a nice dinner when you finish a book. Better yet, get someone to read the same book and discuss it over that nice dinner. Dangle a carrot out there to chase and you’ll be surprised by the motivation you suddenly have to get through an extra chapter or two before turning in for the night. The cherry on top, time spent reading is time spent without the phone in hand.
Summer Reading List:
Empire Of The Summer Moon- A must read for anyone remotely interested in the American West. Wildly informative and a page turner to boot.
Empire of the Summer Moon spans two astonishing stories. The first traces the rise and fall of the Comanches, the most powerful Indian tribe in American history. The second entails one of the most remarkable narratives ever to come out of the Old West: the epic saga of the pioneer woman Cynthia Ann Parker and her mixed-blood son Quanah, who became the last and greatest chief of the Comanches.
The Silk Roads- The book I’ve recommended most since finishing it. It’s intimidating, but well worth the effort. Shrinks human history down to a level where you can actually appreciate just how little we’ve changed even as we’ve changed our world.
Frankopan realigns our understanding of the world, pointing us eastward. It was on the Silk Roads that East and West first encountered each other through trade and conquest, leading to the spread of ideas, cultures and religions. From the rise and fall of empires to the spread of Buddhism and the advent of Christianity and Islam, right up to the great wars of the twentieth century—this book shows how the fate of the West has always been inextricably linked to the East.
La Passione: How Italy Seduced The World- Not going to Italy this summer? No problem, just read this book and you can catch the vibe at home. Plenty of inspiration for future trips in there as well.
Honestly We Meant Well- One of my favorite novels of the past decade. It’s best enjoyed next to a body of water, but no matter where you read it, just read it.
The Wright family is in ruins. Sue Ellen Wright has what she thinks is a close-to-perfect life. A terrific career as a Classics professor, a loving husband, and a son who is just about to safely leave the nest. But then disaster strikes. She learns that her husband is cheating, and that her son has made a complete mess of his life. So, when the opportunity to take her family to a Greek island for a month presents itself, she jumps at the chance. This sunlit Aegean paradise, with its mountains and beaches is, after all, where she first fell in love with both a man and with an ancient culture. Perhaps Sue Ellen’s past will provide the key to her and her family’s salvation.
The Algebra of Wealth- If a book about personal finance seems out of place on a summer reading list, then you don’t know Scott Galloway. Start here, read his other books, listen to his podcasts, feel better about money.
Today's workers have more opportunities and mobility than any generation before. They also face unprecedented challenges, including inflation, labor and housing shortages, and climate volatility. Even the notion of retirement is undergoing a profound rethink, as our life spans extend and our relationship with work evolves. In this environment, the tried-and-true financial advice our parents followed no longer applies. It's time for a new playbook.
Anxious Generation- I debated adding this one to the list because “vibe” wise maybe it’s not a great fit, but you’re a mentality tough individual right? It’s not that the book is a downer, it’s more that it’ll likely make you angry that you let yourself and your loved ones be pawns in Silicon Valley’s sick game. Hopefully you/we/I will focus that anger into action
Haidt has spent his career speaking truth backed by data in the most difficult landscapes—communities polarized by politics and religion, campuses battling culture wars, and now the public health emergency faced by Gen Z. We cannot afford to ignore his findings about protecting our children—and ourselves—from the psychological damage of a phone-based life.