Lucas Cherkewski

Communing with good souls

Hit and Miss #410

Mm, humid summer is here. I shook my head incredulously at the heat warning posted Friday, which said the incoming heat could linger until Thursday—surely this was a typo, I thought, or leftover text from a previous warning. (Which now has me pondering drafting and approval processes for weather warnings!)

But now, living it, it seems right: outside, the thick heat of slow summer days, with sunny skies beckoning you, only to swelter if you heed the call; inside, boredom builds—somehow, despite all modern comfort and convenience (or because of it?)—and you find yourself puttering from spot to spot, taking up board games and movies to pass the time.

I’m glad to see politicians like Catherine McKenney advocating for maximum heat laws (and the right for tenants to install air conditioning in rental units, which the provincial government legislated but never entered into force). Air conditioning is no longer a luxury!

As ever, a good reminder that our built environment contributes enormously to the survivability of extreme (normal?) weather. This piece from a few years ago discusses why British homes are so hot, including longstanding rules on distances between homes (which diminish the possibility of shady courtyards or other design elements), and lack of attention to the orientation of buildings (which, if better placed, could facilitate merciful cross-breezes).

Canada has similar conditions, though with different sources. For example, double egress requirements mean much multi-unit housing is “one-sided”, with little opportunity for ventilation. (Double egress itself comes from old, well-intentioned but now unnecessary rules, as studied by Conrad Speckert.)

Alright, enough being hot under the collar over heat. On to the links!

When we were in Georgia last weekend I met someone who’d opened their own bar. They said their personality had changed as a result of it, that became much more direct. You aren’t an asshole, but you also don’t let yourself get run over. I’ve noticed my directing work seeping into my off hours, in good ways. I notice more and more when I don’t speak up – and should.

I tell this to students all the time when I talk about my books, that your vocations are like masks. They’re like getting to try on new identities, different ways of being, of moving through the world. It’s through that trying on, that play acting, that you come to understand who you are – and who you want to be.

(“Induced Demand”, by Jack Cheng)

I’m sure my teenage self would have scoffed at being lectured at by the late-forties version. And he might have been right to do so; I think you probably have to just go through a certain amount of experience, in order to learn about life, instead of having wisdom dispensed by your elders.

(“Acting because you don’t have to”, by Oliver Burkeman. Burkeman advocates for reducing the pressure on oneself to do all the things, and do them well, while also not giving up on ambition itself.)

Gardening:

  • Yessss to vegetable gardening in front yards—makes them even more interesting to me, signs of green space well used and lives well lived. I think of my Italian grandparents’ suburban backyard vegetable garden, and wonder how much more they would’ve grown if front-yard gardening had been a norm.
  • For more gardening content, the delightful story of Mary Reid, owner of a garden centre here in Ottawa. (It’s near one of the wood suppliers I sometimes visit, so T may finally find reason to join me on my lumber shopping outings.)

Tech:

  • A good write-up of a cybercrime, making clear the great difficulty of investigating and trying theft like this. (Sorry for the lack of gift link on this one, used up for the month! If you’d like a copy, email me.) While the story includes evidence of decent cybersecurity practices, it’s a good reminder that while there’s always more that could be done individually (a password manager is a big one, since it won’t autofill credentials on fake versions of credible sites!), institutions (particularly financial ones) also need smart account security defaults and quick action on suspicious activity.
  • A delightful bit of digital archaeology using disks from a 1996 version of MapInfo Pro, early GIS software. This is from Placing Technologies, a research blog related to Ingrid Burrington’s ongoing dissertation on GIS software. I also recommend Burrington’s Perfect Sentences newsletter, which provides what it says on the tin.
  • Simon Willison’s talk on the tenth anniversary of Django (ten years ago today) includes fun stories of data journalism and programmer life. e.g.: “Really, these kinds of features are what you get when you take 1970s relational database technology and use it to power websites, which – back in 2003, in the news industry – still felt incredibly cutting edge. But, you know, it worked.”

Public service:

  • The federal public service is yet again in interesting times. I’ll hold my tongue on it for the moment, reaching instead for this timely (and thorough!) publication through the Canada School of Public Service (CSPS), Canada’s Federal Spending Reviews: 50 Years of Facts, Figures, and Lessons. When crisis hits, reach for history.
  • This publication is part of a new “Review and Reflection Series”, including a memoir by the late Richard Dicerni. It’s nice to see work like this from CSPS—a throwback to some of the excellent publications from the days of the Canadian Centre for Management Development. (Maybe CSPS has been up to work like this in the years since, but I’ve missed it if so!)

Finally, via T, a touching remembrance of Mary Oliver, written by someone close to her in her final years and days. One night this week, unable to sleep, I came downstairs and read Mary Oliver and Robert Frost for the better part of an hour—two good souls, whose company I’m glad to be able to share.

All the best for the week ahead!

Lucas