Austin Kleon offers some tips for finding creative freedom. I love his idea of a Bliss Station.

Bill Hammack, the engineerguy, explains the engineering behind your typical soda bottle, as well as juice and sports drink bottles. It’s a direct sequel to The Ingenious Design of the Aluminum Beverage Can.

Hammack is a Grainger Distinguished Chair at the University of Illinois — Urbana-Champaign. It might be cool if he did something like this for Illinois sports. Don’t you want to learn the engineering behind a golf ball or throwing a spiral? The videos could be played during timeouts or pre-game.

Tanya Chen, writing for Slate, tells the story of watching and then revisiting the movie Her. After reading her article, I want to revisit the film myself.

Liza Featherstone, writing at The New Republic, has the appropriate take on the “Return of the Dire Wolf” story floating around.

Some of the media headlines have been breathless. Time magazine hailed “The Return of the Dire Wolf.” On the venerable news magazine’s cover, the word “Extinct” is crossed out. “This is Remus,” the cover declares, above the image of a large white canid. “He’s a dire wolf. The first to exist in 10,000 years. Endangered species could be changed forever.” Rolling Stone was equally credulous: “12,000 years later, Dire Wolves are back.”

No. As The Washington Post and Scientific American ably pointed out, Remus is not really a dire wolf. They aren’t “back.” Dire wolves are still extinct. A company called Colossal Biosciences, backed by Peter Thiel, among other God-cosplaying billionaires, was able to breed grey wolves with some dire wolf DNA, creating some bigger and whiter creatures. In addition to a sister, Khaleesi, there are two wolf brothers, named Romulus and Remus, for the human twins who, according to mythology, were suckled by a wolf mother in a series of unlikely events leading to the founding of Rome.

You can’t make this stuff up: As the American empire teeters on the brink of collapse, the billionaires laying waste to what’s left of our natural world and human civilization are not only trying to bring back dangerous, long-extinct animals but naming them after the mythological founders of an empire that went extinct itself due to its rulers’ arrogance. These admittedly handsome critters could easily become symbols of our own imperial collapse.

The first three paragraphs are all you need. “God-cosplaying billionaires” is nice.

The rest is a strangled appeal regarding the Trump administration, oligarchs, regulations, and endangered species that I don’t really have time to care about all that much.

Matthew McConaughey, writing in his Lyrics for Livin’ newsletter, has an idea that I love.

Choreograph first, then dance. Create our own weather, then blow in the wind. You gotta learn to block and tackle before you learn to play wideout. Learn the dialogue before you improvise. Study the playbook, before you call the audible. Look at the blueprint before you take out your sledgehammer and take out the beams. Learn the rules, before you break ‘em. Make plans to be present, and maybe, find out what language it’s in before you speak it.

Most of the world’s most valuable ideas, art, and inventions came about from breaking the “unbreakable” rules. But they knew the rules FIRST.

Nicholas Bate –

Try becoming rock-star good at something. It could be playing loud music. It could also be making lasagne, delivering workshops, leading people, managing money, mowing the lawn, scuba diving….

But it is worth finding something to work at, to strive at, to graft at, in order to discover the particular pleasure deep expertise brings. It’s a deeper and longer-lasting and often accumulative enjoyment: one which is different to that resulting from a cold beer, a movie or Frisbee in the park which although hugely fun comes and then goes. This ‘rock-star’ pleasure is one which keeps you going day-to-day, which builds your moral, your confidence and makes you less dependent upon external factors to feel good.

If you get good at something you tend to enjoy it. If you enjoy something you tend to get good at it. Which comes first? Doesn’t matter too much…just know there’s plenty of free pleasure out there from developing an expertise.

And getting really, really good at something and enjoying doing it might give you a revenue stream which you could hardly call work. And that is worth putting a little effort into.

VelvetShark attempts to decipher why most AI companies have opted for a logo reminiscent of the human sphincter.

Chaoszine interviewed former KISS‬ guitarist Bruce Kulick about his discography with the legendary hard rock band during their unmasked era.

Bruce is an underrated player.

When I was in college, I rarely had to get in a car to go to a party or bar. I rarely ever went to a “townie” bar, and I never had to. We had parties every weekend at various Literary Society (think fraternity/sorority) halls, and we could walk everywhere. My campus was small.

One Saturday night during my senior year, a few of us decided to drive to the local liquor store to buy the kegs we’d be tapping for a party. I must have had the money for the keg, which is why I was going. I was also 21.

We got in the car, and I quickly realized our driver was not good. I realized he’d been drinking all day. He was drunk. I was in a car with a drunk driver. It was too late. Telling him to pull over and let me drive would have started a fight, and I had no intention of doing that while he was behind the wheel. The only thing I could do was buckle the seatbelt, white knuckle the armrest, and try to be nonchalant about the whole experience with the driver, who acted like this was an everyday regular occurrence.

Every day in America right now feels like that drive–riding shotgun with a drunk driver.

The postscript to the drunk driver story is that, luckily, I got back to campus alive with the full keg. The driver managed to keep on the road for the short trip. He probably helped me carry it to the party. I’m sure he tapped the keg and kept on drinking.

I’m pretty sure I didn’t fill a cup.

What’s the moral of the story? I guess we hold on for dear life.

McSweeny’s is undefeated.

Science Focus has a list of the seven most expensive substances on earth, and the top two both combine all three reasons: they are rare, very difficult and expensive to manufacture, and highly coveted because of their usefulness.

I wonder how many of you guessed the most expensive substance?

Ed Cara, writing for Gizmodo, has the story on a study revealing the foods people are less likely to eat once they start taking GLP-1 medications like Ozempic.

Drew Magary, writing at Defector, would like Donald Trump and his minions to, ahem, shut the fuck up.

That big fat trade war that the U.S. launched a few days ago has quickly proven to have the opposite of its intended(?) effect, with every market plunging and every American’s last dollar being fed into a paper shredder. Let’s see what the man responsible for starting that tariff-off has to say about the crisis at hand:

“These countries are calling us up, kissing my ass… They are dying to make a deal.” The president went on to mock the tariff-deal supplicants, pretending to be them as he pitifully pleaded in a simpering voice: “Please, Sir, make a deal. I’ll do anything. I’ll do anything, Sir.”

Oh, shut the fuck up. Just shut the fuck up. Is that so hard? Why can’t you shut up for just two seconds? What, will you break your fucking arm somehow if you accidentally encounter silence? What kind of old man talks this much? When I’m your age, I’ll say a grand total of eight words a year, and those eight words will be the most profound shit you’ve ever heard.

He then goes on to talk about the rest of the clown car and how they are unqualified overwhelmed and dumb.

None of you people were built for this. You’re all unqualified, overwhelmed, and dumber than a post. And you think that standing behind a mic and going hurrr durrr every other country has a smaller dick than us because of these policies will make you Patton. Well, President Kidney Failure, telling everyone you’re the greatest leader who ever led doesn’t make it so. Quite the contrary. People voted for you because they were bored. Now you’re gonna bleed them dry, all while small-talking them to death. Don’t you ever get tired of talking? Don’t you run out of saliva? Is there a strategic gland reserve that you and your cronies are skimming from to keep your maws properly lubricated? You pieces of shit are wasting words, and that offends me as a professional wordsmith. I choose my words carefully before writing them down, because that’s what people are supposed to do. They are not meant to be sentient word clouds, crying FREEDOM! the second a process server knocks on their door.

But that’s what you morons do, because spouting off is the only thing you know how to do. You’re destroying the English language, a feat that not even Ryan Murphy himself could manage despite his tireless efforts. So, before you’ve successfully rendered both America and basic human communication extinct, allow me to talk for just one moment. I only need eight words, and here they are:

Everyone, everywhere, would be better off without you.

The whole thing is pretty glorious.

I don’t know what to think about the future anymore.   We elected a buffoon. The 35% of Americans who think he walks on water and are so incredibly ignorant are going to suffer. Maybe more than the rest of that percentage who understand who Donald John Trump truly is. But probably not.   The damage he has done in less than three months in the Oval Office is catastrophic. His tariffs have cost more than six trillion dollars in several days. These are staggering losses. People will lose their businesses, homes, savings, and lives. Everything.   As I understand it, six trillion is akin to what the United States paid for World War II, which lasted nearly four years.   My company imports its goods from China. There is, or will be soon, a tariff on Chinese goods set at 104%. That is unsustainable for the company I work for and practically every business in America.

Companies reliant on Chinese goods could go out of business as they cannot pay the steep and unforeseen tariffs that are now in place. As companies go out of business, the country will start hemorrhaging jobs—which will begin to impact even service sector jobs as Americans tighten their belts and cut back on discretionary spending.

In sum, things are about to get really freaking ugly.   We bought me a new iPhone because I needed one (I had the oldest one) and in anticipation of everything going up, especially electronics.   Necessities are about to double or triple in price. Trump is a vindictive, unserious, volatile little man who should be rotting in jail, not golfing every other day. I’m sure we will learn about how he stole the election in the years to come. Musk and others manipulated machines. I’m sure of it. Maybe that’s just wishful thinking.   Of course, that’s all predicated on their being a tomorrow. Or free elections. Or a country.   It’s hard to get worked up about Illinois Basketball transfers, the latest season of White Lotus, or the state of Star Wars when the world is crumbling around us. I don’t want to be right about this.   I don’t know what to think about the future anymore.

Nicholas Bate –

(1) Life is messy. (2) Life is unpredictable. (3) Life can make you cry, (4) pull your hair out, (5) throw your hat in the air and even (6) sit down and weep. (7) Life is exciting, (8) scary and at times (9) daunting. (10) Life is funny and often makes you (11) giggle. At other times it is so (12) awe-inspiring, even (13) electrifying it makes you want to (14) hug somebody. But that’s not allowed anymore. Nobody said (15) Life is nor should be easy. Certainly not a (16) bowl of cherries. Life can (17) can pass you by unless you (18) wake up, (19) switch on and (20) fully engage. Life (21) isn’t DNA: that’s a stack of bonded atoms. No, Life (22) is what you make of it. (23) Examine it fully to notice all the (24) moving parts, its (25) potential smooth running and ability to (26) accelerate into action, given (27) regular maintenance, of course. Life (28) meanders on a fine summers day, (29) shivers in NYC snow and (30) loves hot chocolate by outside braziers in Stockholm. (31) Life knows few boundaries, is (32) ever curious and sometimes (33) day-dreams and an (34) amazing imagination conjures up lyrics to pop songs or new improved digital cameras or cool recipes. (35) Life is great long, even better (36) wide and kinda gorgeous (37) deep. (38) Life needs regular massage, (39) good books, quality (40) sleep and regular glimpses of the sea, mountains, the desert and needs also to hear the CRACK of a good (41) thunderstorm. (42) Life loves drama because (43) Life is drama. Life is (44) Planet Earth’s greatest story in which for once we get the major role. (45) Every day an audience turns up and notices our performance. (46) In Life we may or may not connect with that audience; (47) we may or may not have an impact. But whatever, Life is (48) cool, (49) Life is staggeringly rich; Life is (50) despite any irritations of today pretty damn Good.

In 2023, the FBI quietly arrested a notorious money launderer called ElonmuskWHM. Then the FBI secretly ran his operation for nearly a year to catch (and give money to) more criminals.

Florida won the NCAA Championship last night. They trailed for most of the game but came roaring back with some timely offense and gritty defense. Houston basically bullies and fouls constantly and dares refs to call it. It is a swarming defense, but Florida figured it out, and the refs started calling fouls against Houston in the second half.

Because I picked Florida to win it all, I ended up winning my work bracket, so that was cool.

Seth Godin –

We live in a science fiction universe.

A $20 dose of penicillin was priceless a century ago.

The five cents (a nickel!) we spend to light our home might have been the sort of thing we needed to trade an hour of labor for a few generations ago.

The ability to press a button and talk to anyone, by video, anywhere on the planet–it wasn’t even discussed until recently, and now it’s essentially free.

“Compared to what?” is a powerful question. Comparing the miracles of right now to what our parents expected is a useful way to find context and avoid ennui.

It’s easy to get hooked on the miracle of the moment, and to imagine that the next miracle must be even more amazing. And at the same time, we can take a hard look at the real problems people face and decide that no miracle is enough.

But wonder is a choice, and we can find it if we look for it.

I get what he’s saying here and I like the sentiment, but I’d like Seth to pay more attention to the “real problems people face” before deciding to choose wonder.

David Remnick, in a piece for The New Yorker on Signalgate, has a good understanding regarding this administration.

This is an Administration that does not have to slip on a Signal banana peel to reveal its deepest-held prejudices and its painful incapacities. You get the sense that we would learn little if we were privy to a twenty-four-hour-a-day live stream of its every private utterance. Part of what was so appalling about Trump and Vance’s recent meeting with Volodymyr Zelensky was not just their penchant for channelling the world view and negotiating points of Vladimir Putin but their comfort in expressing them, barking them, at the Ukrainian President in front of reporters in the Oval Office.

Similarly, it does not require months of painstaking investigative reporting or a middle-aged tech fail to discover that another member of the group chat, Steven Witkoff, the President’s leading shuttle negotiator, is no more steeped in the granular details of diplomatic history and strategy than any other New York real-estate developer from the eighties in Trump’s circle. In a long interview with Tucker Carlson, following recent conversations in Moscow with Putin, Witkoff consistently parroted Russian talking points and relayed that the Russian dictator (“I don’t regard Putin as a bad guy”) had been “gracious” and gave him a “beautiful portrait” of Trump as a gift for the President. (Trump, in turn, “was clearly touched” by the painting, Witkoff reported.) Throughout, Witkoff’s grasp of the conflict was so wobbly, so Moscow-inflected, that one could almost hear the guffawing from the Kremlin. In a moment of contemplation, Witkoff admitted, “I underestimated the complications in the job, that’s for sure. I think I was a little bit quixotic in the way that I thought about it. Like, I’m going to roll in there on a white horse. And, no, it was anything but that, you know.”

Stupid and ignorant is no way to go through life, son.

Look, this administration and Trump specifically is not nuanced. There is no pretense. It’s all in black and white; if you can’t see it, I don’t know how to help you.

It’s Idiocracy, but all too real.

Robert Rosenthal loves Illinois Football. He’s been covering it as a fan, analyst, and professional blogger for several years, and it is actually his main job now. He follows and writes about Illinois sports to make a living.

I know he’s not just being a homer when he says the following:

…when you see Bret Bielema tweet “the best is yet to come” all the time, I need you to know that he really believes that. It’s not some hopeful thing. He won three consecutive Big Ten titles at Wisconsin in 2010, 2011, and 2012 and he absolutely has his sights set on the same thing at Illinois. This is not something he has told me, it’s something I’ve observed, but I see a focus on being the program that best capitalizes on this new era of college football.

There’s no doubt that it will happen to several Big Ten and SEC programs. As the revenue increases and the revenue sharing increases, many Big 12 and ACC programs just won’t be able to afford the 22% of revenue going to the players. They’ll have to make cuts elsewhere (coaching salaries, facilities) and that will trickle down. The approval of the House vs. NCAA settlement, which might happen before I’m finished writing this article, will signal that some of the programs in these two conferences can get on an elevator to the top floor. Why not Illinois?

Why not?