I had to edit a lot of writing this week.

First, my article for Computers and Libraries Magazine was due Wednesday. I drafted the piece before the holidays and let it sit while I enjoyed my time off. Last week and this week, I did several rounds of intense editing. It was too long and I managed to drop 1,300 words by the final draft. I also noted three additional paragraphs that could be removed if the editor requested more cuts. Luckily, he was good with the article as it was.

Next, my research team and I are in the final stages for our research article. I spent two days editing to chop out material. I de-that-ed all over the place. You never realize just how unnecessary "that" is until you have to edit something line by line. We're reviewing my edits as a team to ensure we're all on the same page. So far, we're mostly in agreement. I love clicking "accept changes"!

Finally, I wrote a book chapter for an upcoming ALA Editions title. I've been working on this piece, off and on, for over a year. Thursday night, they sent me the "last chance" edit. Essentially, what they sent is what is being printed but I had one last change to tweak. My review showed only a few minor revisions.

Oddly, despite having a blog, two newsletters, and writing a lot for work, writing is not one of my favorite activities. Editing, on the other hand, I adore. I love turning on track changes and being ruthless with something. If I'm writing a solo piece, I will print it out and attack it with a red pen. Editing speaks to my need to make things simpler. Plus, I'm not a great writer. Editing is one way I hope to improve. (Although I will never be someone who gets commas. They are my nemesis.)

What do you like better: writing or editing?

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Last night, I polished off The Ghost Map. Towards the end, I found myself laughing a little. The author, Steven Johnson, hits upon how a pandemic might alter our relationship with city infrastructure. This book came out in 2006. I think I need a second edition to hear what he thinks today.

Now I need to figure out what to read next and I have no idea what I’m in the mood for. I put a slew of library requests in to give myself options.

*Books shared here are affiliate links for Bookshop.org

• An older story about responding to text messages in calligraphy. [The Atlantic - gift link]

• How to write emails people will read. [LinkedIn]

• Some tips for buying art to decorate your walls. [Capitol Hill Style]

• The not so humble barcode. [The Atlantic - gift link]

• How to get your kid photos off the internet. [Lifehacker]

• The economics behind Spanish shipwrecks. [Planet Money]

• Voices from those who tried to save the rivers. [Kitchen Sisters]

• I'm not job searching, but if you are this is some useful advice. [Life Kit]

• The science of how we perceive time and change. [How to Keep Time]

• Should have just paid the athletes like the employees they are... [The Daily] 

• A lot of emotion comes from prediction and context. [Hidden Brain]

• Creating a memorial and a movement. [The Kitchen Sisters Present]

• Being highly individualized is not freedom. [How to Keep Time] 

• You learn something new every day. [@cooksillustrated]

• I can't remember why we put Love on. Turns out, it's a super indie film. The movie was low budget but well done with decent special effects. The set, a space station, also did not come across as cheap. This was way more thinkie than action. It was about a man slowly going insane through isolation. There was a weird structure. It kept flashing back to the civil war. Be warned, this was slooooooow - not bad, just slow. [Amazon Prime]

• Another more thinkie movie we watched was Lucy. The whole plot revolves around Scarlett Johansson using 100% of her brain instead of 10% like normal people. (Note: This is a widely debunked myth.) The movie was kind of trippy with weird intercuts. It was also "very French" in the sense that this particular French filmmaker has a known style. Scarlett gives a good performance. She basically has to perform with dead eyes and no emotion and, yet, you still want to like her as a human. [Netflix]

• I have a movie to caution you away from. The Engineer starts strong but fades quickly. I thought this would be more like Munich but it was a below B-level flick that strays  far from the reality of history. Also, this movie is about earlier Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the timing of our watch certainly did not help. [Netflix]

• One movie you should see ASAP is I Care A Lot. Rosamund Pike gives a devastating performance as the anti-hero. She is a court appointed guardian who swindles her wards out of their wealth. You love to hate her. This takes a bit of a thriller turn when Pike's character gets in over her head. I wish this movie came with a disclaimer because this despicable practice happens everywhere. [Netflix]

• It's winter. Despite there being no snow on the ground, I want to eat warming, hearty meals. This week, I made slow cooker white wine chicken stew. It was delicious! I skipped the browning step because I'm lazy and added celery because we had some sitting around. I'm glad this made leftovers because I want to eat it again. [Ambitious Kitchen]

• Bulgogi-inspired beef tacos turned out to be a quick weeknight dinner. The sauce is the most complicated part. Everything comes together in about 20 minutes and it was good. We served our tacos with a bag of Asian-inspired salad. We will be adding this to our regular meal rotation. [Real Simple]

• For my lunch meal prep, I tossed together chickpea and chorizo salad. This one is meant to be eaten chilled but I reheated it every day. It was fantastic. The addition of honey is the perfect balance to the smoky paprika and spicy chorizo. Use the expensive Spanish-style chorizo in this one. It's worth it. [Real Simple]

I am a sucker for photos that show things in rich detail. This close-up of a dragonfly was a finalist in the Close Up Photographer of the Year. [The Atlantic - may be paywalled]

Fry Universe shows you all the kinds of French fries that are out there. You can explore 3D models of each kind. This amuses me greatly.

The Husband and I both have Monday off AND we got kiddo into a (most of the day) art camp. I have no idea what to do with this free time.