Tangent #25 - Rat Race Withdrawals
Plus media worth consuming and your photo of the week
Greetings from Colombia! I’m at the tail end of my two week trip back to the homeland and have made my way from sunny Santa Marta to chilly Bogotá.
Let’s get on with this week’s newsletter!
Tangent - Rat Race Withdrawals
A couple of weeks ago, I promised to share some of the fears that along with The AI Rat Race have been ruminating in my mind. More so than fears, they are withdrawals—bouts of doubt. I explore them in my latest piece (read here).
Media Worth Consuming
AI Can’t Plan Corn (Yet) by Kyla Scalon
I think this is one of my favorite reads this year. It’s sobering, playful, and tremendously insightful. Kyla uses the famous “Stop AI Development” letter that made the news this week as a foil for broader musings on whether it’s already too late, whether anything can be done, and broader reflection on the sustained importance of the physical world.
Unfashionable Wrist Braces & The Guilt of Feeling "Unproductive" by Alexandra Allen
Alexandra wrote a very timely reflection on that sensation of not feeling productive and the tension that causes when you are a solopreneur and no-one can pick up the slack. I loved how she creates a “minimum viable work day” to avoid paralysis or self-flagellation.
Library Notes March 31st, 2023 by Steven Foster
I was part of Steven’s Photography for Creatives over the last few weeks. The course was just what I needed to feel like a more competent photographer and arm me with foundational concepts to level up my skills and continue mastering this wonderful art form. In this note, he reflects on why the course was a resounding success (I agree). Check it out!
Photo of the Week - Tayrona Postcard
I bring you this postcard from the Cabo San Juan beach, one of three beaches in Tayrona National Park in Santa Marta Colombia (and the most popular one). To get here you have to make a two hour trek (each way) through stairs, rocks, mud, and some wooden paths. Every step is breathtaking. I left with a sense of pride at the sheer natural beauty Colombia has. Unfortunately, I don’t think we are the stewards this natural wonder needs us to be (I guess that goes for all planet Earth). Regardless, I took this picture and immediately thought “postcard.”
Until next time!
Camilo! That Tyrona postcard is so alive and vibrant. It took me there: I could feel the wind and the sound of the waves and the palm trees. Beautiful colors and composition. I enjoyed this issue of Tangent: your writing is very effective and evocative, and your ideas always well thought-out. Bravo!