This & That: February 14, 2023

Keep getting out there.

Hello readers,

Happy Valentine’s Day! Early in our relationship, Jane and I decided that it was close enough to Christmas that we didn’t really need more gifts or a fancy occasion. We instead leaned in to what we truly liked and landed on one of our best traditions: pizza and beer.

Do you celebrate the holiday of love? I’d love to hear your traditions — however high or low brow they may be.

In today’s newsletter, I have some thoughts about doing hard but fulfilling things, a mini list of lovey dovey books, and some great links to share.

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Something I’m Thinking About: Keep Getting Out There

As we do most Saturdays, Jane and I attempted to get our three little ones out on a hike this last weekend. Remember, they’re 7.5, 5, and 2 — getting out the door, in winter no less, is not easy. The littlest tyke has especially struggled on the trail lately. He wants to walk, like his brother and sister, and has been refusing to go into his kid carrier pack. So we haven’t been very successful this winter.

But we keep trying.

On Saturday morning the stars aligned and all three kids were happy for the vast majority of our 2-mile hike in Rocky Mountain National Park. It was slow going, of course, but we did it. It was as fun as we’ve had on a trail in many months.

A little luck and a little preparation certainly helped: Great weather, lots of layers, shoe spikes for everybody (including the big kids), and a well-timed pacifier for the 2-year old (he usually only gets it during naptime/bedtime).

But honestly, I think part of the success of this weekend is simply that we keep trying. No matter what happened the weekend before, we load up the van again, trek out to a trailhead, and see what we can do.

Hiking is a restorative and fulfilling part of our life — it would have been all too easy to give it up once kids came along. Sure, it’s harder and we’re not going as quickly or as far as we used to, but getting out there is always worth it.

Whatever getting out there means for you, keep doing it, especially when it gets tough. Because that’s when it’ll be the most rewarding.

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The Mini List: All You Need Is Love

• Twenty-One Truths About Love by Matthew Dicks — in one of the most unique books I’ve ever read, Dicks crafts a touching, honest story composed entirely of lists.

• The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion — a Type A professor falls for someone entirely unlike him. Funny and heartwarming.

• Nora Goes Off Script by Annabel Monaghan — a romance scriptwriter knows the formula; when she veers into unfamiliar territory, though, everyone involved is in for a few surprises.

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Miscellany

🤖 Famed sci-fi writer Ted Chiang hits the nail on the AI head. Of all the analysis I’ve seen in the last few months, “ChatGPT Is a Blurry JPEG of the Web” tops the list.

🖥️ Beyond the AI analysis, there are real skills to be learned. Charlie Warzel, one of my favorite writers on tech and work, argues that learning how to manipulate AI — in the form of writing the best possible prompts — may be the most important skill of this century.

🏈 Greatness on the gridiron is fleeting. Just ask Joe Montana. Before Tom Brady came along and won seven Super Bowls, #16 was considered the GOAT. The inimitable Wright Thompson goes deep in this incredible profile of Montana.

🍲 You won’t believe the most popular recipe on New York Times Cooking. The old-fashioned beef stew published in 1994 rakes in tens of thousands of views per day. The ingredients are simple, but the directions are a little fussy. I’ll probably just chuck it all in the crockpot and let it slow cook all day.

⚡ The technological gadget I find most indispensable these days might come as a surprise. This 3-in-1 charging cord goes everywhere I go. Works to charge the phone, iPad, Kindle, MacBook, etc. Until the USB-C is universal (which will happen soon enough), this thing stays with me.

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Thanks so much for the time and attention — I deeply appreciate it.

-Jeremy