Holding pattern

Hello! Writing you Friday, but if all goes well you’ll get this sometime Sunday. We’re away for the weekend with friends and I’m trying my best to disconnect!

September’s finally here, eh? August flew by. At work, I was filling in for Michael, my manager—it was invigorating, but, also, I’m glad Michael’s back. At home, I’ve travelled (within Ontario, heh) more than I have for some time, including some last minute plans we made when opportunity presented itself. It’s all left me thinking about what’s next. Fall has always felt like a time of renewal (despite what the leaves do), of starts, and I’m happy to lean into that where I can. It may be time to exit a few holding patterns, in other words.

I’ve got a few things to do before we hit the road today, so, briefly, on to the links! Just a few this week:

• the pressure for strategies and plans, and the people crisis that arises from uncertainty around both (h/t Sarah H)
• a few linkblog posts from me this week: sharing a policy’s legal opinion; critical minerals, net-zero, and consumerism; software development vs government contracting, and how the Phoenix contract included the worst of both worlds (h/t Sean B for resurfacing Waldo’s post)
• with thanks to Maria Popova’s annotations of David Whyte’s Consolations, I picked it up this week—brief, poetic definitions of everyday (and unexpected) words, absolutely lovely to read in the morning or before bed (times when the mind seems most open to redefinition)

All the best for the week ahead!

Lucas