Free Press / Building Stories

Issue No. 90

FREE PRESS – A PICTORIAL HISTORY OF UNDERGROUND NEWSPAPERS 1965-1975

Free Press: Underground & Alternative Publications 1965-1975
by Jean-François Bizot (editor)
Universe
2006, 264 pages, 9 x 1.1 x 13.5 inches (softcover)

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The mid-1960s were an exciting time for art, music, youth culture, society, and politics, all of which were transforming at dizzying speed. The left wing underground press of the time reflected these mind-boggling changes in their design, content, and distribution methods. Underground newspapers from around the world joined the Underground Press Syndicate, sharing articles and illustrations free of copyright restrictions.

These papers gleefully taunted the establishment by promoting recreational drugs, recreational sex, black power, gay rights, women’s liberation, anti-authoritarianism, and anti-war activism. The covers of the papers were bold, experimental, and subversive. When I was designing bOING bOING (the late 1980s/early 1990s zine) I was inspired by the precious few samples of The East Village Other, The Realist, and The Gothic Blimp Works that I could find in used bookstores. I wish I’d had a copy of Free Press back then! Almost every page of this book has a full-color photo of a cover or interior page from dozens of well-known and obscure newspapers from the era. Though much of the design is amateurish and ugly, there are examples of brilliance, too, making this a worthy reference for designers.

– Mark Frauenfelder

BUILDING STORIES – CHRIS WARE’S MAGNUM OPUS INCLUDES 14 LAVISHLY PRESENTED STORIES IN DIFFERENT FORMATS, ALL IN ONE BOX

Building Stories
by Chris Ware
Pantheon
2012, 260 pages, 11.7 x 16.6 x 1.9 inches (hardcover, softcovers, boxed)

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Chris Ware is renowned as the kind of comic artist who makes you expect more from the genre. For nearly three decades, his unfussy, formalized style has given birth to cult strips such as Rusty Brown and Quimby The MouseM. Despite his style being modeled after the simplicity of Tintin in order to express emotion in as universal a way as possible, his style is a vehicle for the minutiae of human struggle. Building Stories is no different.

Largely comprised of strips previously published in national newspapers, but also featuring unreleased material, Building Stories is Ware’s magnum opus – 14 lavishly presented stories in one beautifully designed box, itself adorned with extra strips and illustrations. The separation of the stories into physically distinct objects is intended to allow the reader to acquaint themselves with the characters in any order they choose.

Revolving around the lives of the inhabitants of an apartment block in Chicago, his pet themes of social alienation, excessive rumination and the pervasive feeling of being railroaded by mundanity are all present and correct. A number of archetypes populate the building – the lonely old lady, the bickering couple, the single young woman, but Ware imbues each with its own identity.

Arguably the most prominent character is the young woman who has a prosthetic leg, observed at various unassuming yet pivotal moments in her life, whether she’s summer house sitting, lying awake at night thinking of her newborn child, or trying to overcome her anxiety in a writing class. It is tough not to feel empathy for her directionless existence, constant anxieties over wasted potential and the recursive spikes of past trauma. A soap opera in the best sense, there is more than a touch of Charles M. Schulz about Ware’s existentially preoccupied, neurotic characters.

Ware also experiments with layout to sometimes dizzying effect. The effusive nature of Branford the Best Bee in the World is matched by spiraling circular panels, whereas our aforementioned heroine wearily lives out her life inside row after row of regulation size square panels.

The presentation of the strips in wildly differing formats makes this a true collector’s package – pamphlets, news sheets, hardback book, comic on a fold-up “game board,” and more. If you happen to be looking for the graphic novel’s answer to Ulysses, then look no further. If not, buy it anyway. You’ll believe a comic can do amazing things. – Nick Parton

Ecosphere

Tools for Possibilities: issue no. 162

No maintenance micro-world

EcoCosm/EcoSphere

As I write, a dozen brine shrimp dart about in the bowls on my desk. They nibble on green algae coating the rocks inside. I have never fed them, nor cleaned the bowl, nor aerated their water. In fact their home is sealed airtight in a glass globe; nothing goes in or out. They are completely carefree pets, living in a completely self-sustaining world. The algae produce food and oxygen from room light, the shrimp and snails make carbon dioxide for the plants. Together all three organisms support each other with no input from me, other than admiration. Their globes are little sustainable planets of sorts, a balanced ecosystem that could in theory continue indefinitely. One of my spheres thrived for many years before accidently being smashed.

I keep these micro-worlds for three reasons: 1) as a lazy-man’s aquarium (vacation? You could leave for a year and they wouldn’t care), 2) for the constant reminder of how we humans are kept alive by other species, and 3) for the inspiration of a self-sustaining whole system.

You can purchase a ready-made small 4-inch Ecosphere filled with about three shrimp, one snail and a bit of algae, sealed airtight in a perfect glass sphere for $65. The same producer has other larger models, but this one is about the size of a softball. The best place to get one such is at Brookstones store; they are cheaper here than from the manufacturer and Brookstones has a more generous return/exchange policy. The latter is important because a system this small is very sensitive to room conditions, and it is easy to kill off the inhabitants before you find the optimal place in a room — which is warm but (surprisingly) not brightly lit. With this off-the shelf option you get an instant world (works as a gift), but one with few individuals and a somewhat delicate balance. My shrimp and snails are still going strong 10 years later.

For the same price you can assemble a much larger — and better– eco-habitat at home by purchasing a small kit from EcoCosm in Hawaii and upgrading the bowl. Order the smallest size micro-habitat ($40), which will give you about a dozen or more Hawaiin brine shrimp, a few snails, and a beautiful bit of porous rock and gravel seeded with algae, all afloat in sea water and packed with a small plastic hexagonal container. Discard the container and substitute a glass fish bowl. I found the best and cheapest spherical bowls are not sold in pet stores but in art stores for use in decorating, holding glass marbles and the like. I got a 8-inch globe for $4. I put in the creatures, the rocks, and then added brine water (1 part sea water to 2 parts fresh water) to top it off. I cut a small circle of plastic to seal the top. The shrimp (about 1/2 inch long when mature) are amazingly visible and active during the day. They constantly distract in a good way.

The question many owners of these brine shrimp/algae worlds want to know is, how long will they live and can the shrimp reproduce? While an individual shrimp can live for up to 5 years, unlike most marine invertebrates, the endemic Hawaiian red brine shrimp (Halocaridian rubra) reproduce very sparingly. This is why they are expensive to culture (and why it is illegal to use wild brine shrimp from the rare anchialine ponds). There are reports of Ecospheres hatching shrimp fry, but they are rare enough to offer little hope yours will. However, even if the shrimp die, the algae will continue to live for decades or longer — an additional ecological lesson.

From my observations of the micro-habitats that friends and I have owned it is clear that the usual cause of decline is too much light. Room light, even dull overhead fluorescent in a Dilbert cubicle, is all the light these worlds need. The tiny orbs of self-sustaining life are great instructional aids. If you like living things nearby but don’t like the slavery of upkeep, these are perfect pet/gardens, and ideal office mates.

May you be a fine god! — KK

Once a week we’ll send out a page from Cool Tools: A Catalog of Possibilities. The tools might be outdated or obsolete, and the links to them may or may not work. We present these vintage recommendations as is because the possibilities they inspire are new. Sign up here to get Tools for Possibilities a week early in your inbox.

Ambient music streams/Thinking skills guide/Kindle hand strap

Recomendo - issue #486

Thinking skills guide

A sensible little book is The Great Mental Models (Vol.1) by Shane Parrish. It presents nine different “General Thinking Concepts,” or what I might call, best practices for critical thinking. You may already use some of these when approaching unknowns, but others may be unfamiliar. The tone and strength of this book are ideal for young people and students, starting out on their journey of lifelong learning. It is a great little chest of handy tools for grappling with complexity. These are all post-AI skills. — KK

Catalog of Dark Patterns

The Dark Patterns Hall of Shame was created by a team of researchers and designers to raise awareness about manipulative design techniques used by companies and websites. There are lots of visual examples of dark patterns — including hard-to-cancel subscriptions, hidden costs, nagging, and tricky wording. I wasn’t at all surprised to see Amazon Audible as a repeat offender. Although it’s called a “hall of shame,” the aim isn’t just to call out bad companies. The website serves as a cautionary guide, offering suggestions for better approaches, examples of what to avoid, and explanations of what isn’t a dark pattern (and why). — CD

Kindle hand strap

I‘ve been using my left pinkie to support my Kindle for so many years that it feels permanently damaged. Recently, I noticed my sister had an elastic hand strap on her Kindle. It lets you slip your hand between the strap and the Kindle, so you don’t have to grip the Kindle. I bought one made by Kowjaw, but there are many different designs available. Too bad I didn’t learn about this sooner; I wouldn’t have ende up with a sore pinkie. — MF

Explore the World of Wine with André Mack

I’m not a big YouTube watcher, but if I were going to subscribe and consistently follow anyone’s channel, it would be Bon Appétit’s sommelier André Mack. He is incredibly likable and nothing like what I imagine when I think of a traditional wine expert. He’s naturally charming and generous in the way he shares his knowledge about wine and spirits, along with practical advice on how to buy, pair, and taste wine. I have an upcoming trip to Kentucky’s Bourbon Trail, and I’ve learned so much from him about what makes bourbon truly “bourbon.” I highly recommend checking out his entire playlist on YouTube. — CD

Perplexity browser

The Comet Browser combines Perplexity’s AI engine with daily browsing tasks. After a month, it keeps surprising me: it can navigate websites, compare deals, summarize articles and videos, automate online purchases, draft and organize emails, manage my calendar, and intelligently group tabs using language requests. I migrated my Chrome bookmarks and extensions with no hassles. Here’s a demo video, plus a free trial of the Pro version for a month. — MF

Ambient music streams

Fifty years ago Brian Eno invented ambient music. The music was intended to stay in the background while being present, like furniture. For best results ambient was meant to be always on, but that was easier said than done. Constantly changing disks or setting up multiple playlists is a chore. What we’ve been doing at home is tuning a music streaming service to play “Eno and Eno-like music” round the clock. The channel is always on, low volume, and it rarely repeats, so what we get is the endless ambient music Eno originally had in mind. Try it. – KK

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Cheaper Holiday Flights/Most Powerful Passports/Corporate Good Guys

Nomadico issue #177

USA Airfare Price Drops

Softening demand from a weakening economy, increased seat capacity, and plummeting visits from abroad have led to cheaper flights from or around the USA during the holidays. Prices are lower than they have been for years. This report from Dollar Flight Club shows that domestic holiday flight prices are down an average of 19% across the board and international flight prices are down 9%. The destinations where you’ll find the best deals are the cities in Florida, Dallas, and Cancun. For departure airports, the biggest drops are in Boston, Nashville, and San Jose (CA). For international departures, prices have dropped the most from Houston, San Jose, and Chicago.

Brain Trick for Plane Sleeping

There are as many tips about trying to sleep on a plane in economy class as there are colors of neck pillows at the airport, but I’ve got one trick that has worked consistently for me for a hundred+ flights and bus rides. I pop on an eye mask, put in the noise-canceling earbuds, then play one of the two albums that are my “sleep albums.” These never change. What you pick probably doesn’t matter as long as it’s mellow, but the idea is to find something that trains your brain to say, “Ah, okay, the sleep music. It must be time to snooze.” I’ll put the album on repeat, but I rarely make it past the third song before I’m out.

The Most Powerful Passports

Which passports will get you into the most countries visa-free? This year’s report says the three most powerful ones are all from Asia: Singapore, South Korea, and Japan. Five countries tying for fourth are all in Europe. Australia is tied for seventh, the UK is in the group ranking eighth, and Canada is tied for number nine. For the first time since the index started 20 years ago, the U.S. passport dropped out of the top-10 and now sits at #12. That’s down three places from last year, tied with Malaysia and just one point above Bulgaria and Romania.

The Case for Wearing Patagonia

I was just in Patagonia, around a lot of people wearing Patagonia, and I made a YouTube video about that here. I also published this blog post about buying quality travel clothes that will last instead of throwaway fast fashion. I noted in there that Generation Z is leading a resurgence in buying responsibly and buying used; hopefully it will spread. No company has done more for this cause than Patagonia: they are the most sustainably run large apparel corporation in the world, from every angle. They prove it every day by making clothing good enough to carry a lifetime guarantee, plus they give you a credit for trading in items you don’t want anymore (or accept worn-out ones for recycling). They regularly send staffed trucks into adventure travel destinations to repair rips and broken zippers. And that’s just the start. See more on their website here.

A weekly newsletter with four quick bites, edited by Tim Leffel, author of A Better Life for Half the Price and The World’s Cheapest Destinations. See past editions here, where your like-minded friends can subscribe and join you.

What’s in my NOW? — Devin Porter

issue #228

I am a former professional poker player turned life coach. I leverage my years of reading people at the poker tables and navigating corporate strategy at a Fortune 100 company to help clients see their patterns clearly and determine their next best moves. I’m fascinated by games and the human psychology associated with playing them.

If you’re curious what 1:1 coaching is all about you can find me at devinportercoaching.com where you can schedule a free session or sign up for my newsletter where I will sometimes send you an email discussing a popular game and how it relates to the human psyche. — Devin Porter

PHYSICAL

• Frostbeard Studio Literature-Inspired Candles. My wife calls these “Nerd Candles”. I’m always looking for ways to make the common a little more magical and lighting a candle that smells like a character/location in the book I’m reading adds a delightful little touch!
• Family portrait Simpson-ized! This turned out to be the best family photo we’ve ever taken! Hand-drawn and absolutely perfect, even the dogs are an exact replica of our dogs Dash and Norah Bones.
• Memento Mori coin. I got this from the Daily Stoic (ran by Ryan Holliday) and it’s a beautiful and small (easy to carry in your pocket) reminder to be present right now. That you could die right now and this could all be over. A great gratitude reminder.

DIGITAL

• NYT Daily Crossword! I got hooked on these a few years ago and it’s been a part of my daily routine since. There is something gratifying about the little jingle it plays when you complete the crossword. It’s a great way to keep sharp, learn something new every day, and marvel at the creativity and innovation of the puzzle creators.
• A Podcast for Coaches. Mark Butler is my “Yoda” in the coaching space and his podcast is a great resource for any coach, therapist, or even entrepreneur as Mark also was the CFO for the YNAB (You need a Budget) app. I love how he thinks and articulates his thoughts in an inspiring and humble way. Part business, part coaching, always entertaining.

INVISIBLE

Ever since hearing this quote by Jerzy Gregorek:

“Easy decision, hard life. Hard decision, easy life.”

I’ve been amazed at how applicable it is to almost any area of life. Tough conversation with a loved one or co-worker? Career Choice? Raising your children? It applies to all; if you choose the easy path you will ultimately be making your long-term life harder. If you choose the hard now, your life will be easier in the long run.

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Print Workshop / Smart About Sharks 

Issue No. 90

PRINT WORKSHOP – PRINT UP ALL KINDS OF FUN STUFF WITH THIS STEP-BY-STEP HANDBOOK FOR THE DIY ARTIST

Print Workshop: Hand-Printing Techniques and Truly Original Projects
by Christine Schmidt
Potter Craft
2010, 176 pages, 7.5 x 9 x 0.7 inches (softcover)

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A year after moving, I am still finding miscellaneous books tucked into previously unpacked boxes. Luckily, that means I get to rediscover favorites like Christine Schmidt’s Print Workshop: Hand-printing Techniques and Truly Original Projects. With step-by-step instructions, project templates, and illustrated project and resource guides, this book serves as both an exhaustive guide for the DIY-er just starting out in printmaking, as well as a jumping-off point for artists who need a nudge toward new ideas.

Schmidt, the creative force behind San Francisco’s Yellow Owl Workshop, organizes the book into several helpful and easy-to-navigate sections. She opens with a brief but thorough introduction to the processes of printmaking, followed by a comprehensive guide, complete with photos and drawings, to setting up a home studio and choosing materials. These initial images of materials-for-making reappear in the technique chapters, plucked from the original grid shots to become part of each project, transformed into visual verbs for the printing process.

As someone who has no formal training in printmaking, I was especially interested in the breadth of the form. The “Relief Printing” chapter, for example, hosts a wax seal project, and “Image Transfer Printing” includes refreshingly simple pin-prick stationary. This book is full of fantastic gift ideas (I’ll be making the sweet-potato-printed picnic set for a wedding present, and my holiday preserves are about to get gussied-up with water-slide decal jars), and because printing is made for multiples, I plan to make a whole cache of go-to homemade presents to pull from throughout the year. – Mk Smith Despres

SMART ABOUT SHARKS – FILLED WITH FASCINATING BITE-SIZED SHARK FACTS

Smart About Sharks
by Owen Davey
Flying Eye Books
2016, 40 pages, 9.2 x 11.5 x 0.5 inches

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I love children’s books that are as delicious for kids as they are for adults, and Smart About Sharks is exactly that. With a sumptuous textured cloth cover, an appealing gray-tinted palette of earth tones playfully punctuated by pink, and a retro encyclopedic design, Smart is filled with fascinating bite-sized shark facts that were completely new to me. Examples: sharks were here on earth 200-million years before dinosaurs; there’s a shark called a megamouth that has a glow-in-the-dark mouth; some sharks grow only to the size of a pencil.

Smart About Sharks, just released today, is similar to illustrator Owen Davey’s other info-packed animal book, Mad About Monkeys, which came out almost exactly a year ago (363 days to be exact), and which I reviewed here on Wink. Everything from what sharks eat to their social life to their various shapes, sizes, and many different types (over 500 unique species in our oceans today!) is covered in this high-quality picture book. Rumor has it that this is the start of a series with Flying Eye Books. I hope the rumors are true! – Carla Sinclair

Books That Belong On Paper first appeared on the web as Wink Books and was edited by Carla Sinclair. Sign up here to get the issues a week early in your inbox.web as Wink Books and was edited by Carla Sinclair.

What’s in my NOW? — Devin Porter