June 1, 2019

From Gerald R. Lucas

Welcome to June.[1]

I’ve been doing some work on this site, and decided to really write that textbook this time. Writing.Digital will hopefully become my default textbook for NMAC 3108 and NMAC 5108. That means I have until next spring to get it into shape: call it up to version 1.

I’m reading my first Kindle book: Daryl Easlea’s Without Frontiers: The Life & Music of Peter Gabriel. I’m still in Gabriel’s Genesis years, but those are about done. I really need to go back and spend some time with that music, especially Foxtrot and The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway. I have them ready on the phone, but I know Autumn would not share my enthusiasm for listening on our upcoming trip.

I really like my new Kindle Paperwhite much more than I thought I would. It’s the perfect size for my hand; it’s very easy to read; it communicates with GoodReads in a similar fashion to my all-time favorite and sorely missed Readmill; and, perhaps most importantly, it doesn’t interrupt me with email notifications every minute. I like that it’s focused on reading books. I really don’t even use my iPad anymore.

Seriously, I’ve been thinking about giving up Apple entirely. At least I know it wouldn’t be difficult. I want a phone like the latest Palm; I want a laptop like my MacBook Pro that runs Linux (but much cheaper);[2] and I could pretty easily ditch my Apple Watch — honestly, it’s still mostly annoying rather than functional, especially if my iPhone is lurking near. It’s been months since I gave up Facebook, and I don’t think it would really be difficult to minimize further.

Notes

  1. Not as cruel as April, but freakin’ hot. Oppressive.
  2. No, I have no intention of parting with my MacBook Pro. Thanks. Still, I could.