Happy Pride Month!
I’ve got some Pride friendly recs for ya this month. I wrote something longer but it was clunky. Just check out the recommendations, they’re great. Also, I drew up a new Recs logo.
Song I’m Digging
You – Regard, Troye Sivan & Tate McRae
I’ve liked Troye Sivan ever since the DJ played Bloom between bands at a concert I went to a couple years back. (Thanks Shazam!) He’s one of these artists you don’t really hear on the radio but still has a huge fan base. Though I have started to hear You on the radio, so that’s cool. I love a good pop song and his tend to be great.
Book I’m Reading
Don’t recall where I came across this book. I hadn’t read any of Kat’s work before but the art and premise drew me in. It’s easily one of my favorite books from last year.
Snap strikes up a friendship with the old woman on the outskirts of town that sells roadkill skeletons. Rumor is she’s a witch. That remains to be seen. What she does have is a connection to Snap’s family history.
Very Short Backstory I’m Enjoying
The surprisingly touching (fanfic) history of Statler and Waldorf. Yes, the old heckling muppets.
What I’m Thinking About
Talent is the interest in the thing.
When most folks think of talent or say someone is talented, there is generally this notion that the person is just naturally good at it. I certainly find myself thinking this at times. But that almost always dismisses the YEARS of work that went into getting good at the thing.
Certainly there are prodigies that do have some bizarre innate ability and are great at the thing. And that’s fascinating and envious but it’s also really rare. That’s also an excuse. Often we don’t want to put in the work, so it’s easier to just say “that person is blessed with talent”. It excuses us from having to work at the thing to get good at it.
I’m going to use piano as the example and stop saying “the thing.”
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Most pianists who get good at piano have a modicum of innate ability. Their brain probably understands the piano a little better than the next person. Which probably plays into the initial interest to pursue it. The real talent though is their overwhelming interest in piano. That interest is what enables them to put in countless hours learning, practicing, understanding, and getting better at piano. So what separates the mediocre from the great? It’s focus. There are loads of folks who enjoy playing the piano and even put in a lot of work but aren’t particularly good at it. The people that focus on elevating their ability are the ones that level up. Almost anyone can learn to bang out a song on the piano. But who wants to learn scales, finger numbering, correct hand position, reading music, pitch, melody, and on and on? The person without the piano talent is going to give up when it doesn’t come easily but the talented pianist has an interest that won’t let them quit, a desire to stick with and get better at it. Interest, that’s the real talent. What I’m Up To Woodland Hills is officially out for submission. My agent has sent out the pitch to a number of editors. So now it’s a waiting game to see if there is a publishing house that’s excited about it. I try not to think about it too much. The baby bird has been pushed out of the nest. Fingers crossed that she’ll fly. In real world Woodland related news, there is a skunk that lives somewhere around my house and I’ve seen it a handful of times in the evening. I made a little video of him HERE. I had thought that skunks were nocturnal but apparently they are crepuscular. Meaning they are mostly active at dawn and dusk. Hooray Skunk Facts™ And that’s what’s awesome this month! -Josh |
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