Austin Kleon - Curiosity is not a luxury

Hey y’all,

Here are 10 things I thought were worth sharing this week: 

1. I love the idea that curiosity is not a luxury and that the first step towards cultivating curiosity is to acknowledge our ignorance and embrace uncertainty.
    
2. This week I read Carlo Rovelli’s Helgoland: Making Sense of the Quantum Revolution and a poem at every meal from Michael Robbins’ Walkman.
    
3. Hands off the NYPL’s picture collection!
    
4. “What am I supposed to be, slothful?” I loved this portrait of Ishmael Reed, which inspired me to read his equally-excellent Paris Review interview and his poems, and pick up his novel, Mumbo Jumbo.  
    
5. I stole a move from Reed’s childhood, and I’ve been listening to John Ciardi narrate The Inferno while reading along in the paperback. (I’m collecting good listens for the upcoming spooky season, like Basil Rathbone Reads Edgar Allen Poe.)
    
6. I am a big fan of printmaking with vegetables. This week I used leftover peppers and onions.
    
7. Eye candy: I’ve been diving into the work of San Francisco collage artist Jess. (I picked up two books of his work: To and From the Printed Page and O! Tricky Cad and Other Jessoterrica. Both gorgeous, but the former is more of a traditional exhibition catalog with essay.)
    
8. Podcast: the second season of Call Paul premiered with yours truly.  
    
9. We’ve been watching a bunch of movies. Three that stuck out this week: Dangerous Liaisons, J.Lo in Hustlers and a re-watch of Michael Mann’s Collateral. (Michael Mann and Carlo Rovelli are now entangled in my mind.)
    
10. Writing with clichés, puns, and hooks.