PicoBlog

I’m sorry to say that this week’s WTF is about Cocomelon. Cocomelon is a “show” with which far too many parents have been forcibly familiarized in recent years, and if you are the rare person reading this newsletter who needed that explainer, I envy you. I’m confident I could fill the pages of a book with WTFs on Cocomelon, but this particular WTF is leveled at two songs in the Cocomelon catalogue: “My Mommy Song” and “My Daddy Song.

TLDR: Mutual value is the key to influence & inspiration I was talking with a friend recently about sales tactics like storytelling, negotiating, mirroring, and objection handling. It came up that these tactics can be perceived as coercion or manipulation, so we debated the merit of that and arrived at what I think is an interesting distinction. Not surprisingly, others have documented the difference between these “four horsemen,” but not in the context of sales or fundraising as far as I could tell.

Over the years I’ve shared lots of information about coffee culture here in Italy. I’ve also talked about how to recreate those coffees at home. But I’ve just realized that most of these coffee recipes are for cold coffee drinks like shakerato, caffe leccese and iced coffee. Although I certainly could win some sort of award for taking the most photographs of my daily coffees, I don’t think I’ve ever shared an actual recipe for a warm coffee drink.

Hi everyone, It’s been far too long since I’ve written anything, and the longer it goes the bigger a deal it becomes, so I figured I’d just write some stuff. Here’s something I’ve been thinking about recently. There’s an internal experience I think of as cohering, which is when you find a consistent version of yourself to be in the moment, and then commit to it. An extreme example of the experience: You’re feeling vaguely out of sorts, not quite sure what to do with yourself.

I want to tell you about Coke Stevenson. Or rather, Robert Caro’s telling of Coke Stevenson in Means of Ascent, the second volume of Caro’s biography of President Lyndon Baines Johnson The Years of Lyndon Johnson. There’s a lot to tell. How he defied conventional political wisdom against the mockery and scorn of journalists and won landslide elections with a record of delivering, a firm handshake and his laconic Texan manner.

The coldest of cold takes (the very opposite of hot takes), pop culture analysis, writing about writing, personal essays, and essays about the world right now. Come read and think along with me. By Kelly J. Baker · Over 1,000 subscribersNo thanksncG1vNJzZmibn6Gxta3Knqpnq6WXwLWtwqRlnKedZA%3D%3D

This was not the plan for this week’s essay, but after Colleen Ballinger’s absolutely bizarre “apology” video (in which there was, unsurprisingly, no apology), I had to.  If you think about it a little, Colleen Ballinger falls (im)perfectly into the whole idea of this substack: she is a woman who believes she was wrongly villainized by the media and the public. While my previous investigations of bimbos have been situated within a pretty clear historical context that we have had time to reflect on, this situation with Colleen Ballinger is happening in the present.

Jamaica isn't just a destination; it's a rhythm, a vibe, and, notably, a style. A couple of weeks ago, I found myself on the beach under the sun sipping rum punches on this beautiful island. It was a leisurely escape, no high-profile fashion events or designer shop visits were on my agenda. But you know what? Even though I didn't intentionally set out to look for it, I couldn't ignore the fact that Jamaican style— from the vibrant colors to its vast array of influences— is basically a big, lively celebration of life, all channeled through the clothes people wear.

We have the breadth of the last 70 years of pro football history to get to, so let’s get started. Watching Manning play was like watching Bob Ross paint. You’re down with Bob Ross, right? His The Joy of Painting, which featured him turning a blank canvas into an idyllic landscape in 30 minutes or less, was a PBS midday programming staple in the 1980s. The program was later rediscovered by my sons’ generation on YouTube and streaming services.