Welcome to this week's [evening] edition of our Friday Quality Linkage column. Please enjoy this week’s collection of interesting and entertaining links. Pour yourself a drink, find a comfortable place, and relax.
How to Vote »
Adam Lisagor and crew of Sandwich Video enlisted the help of Demi Adejuyigbe — who you'll remember from a recent Quality Linkage column — to make this entertaining "short lesson on how to democracy." Timely and important.
Illustration by Yin Weihung
What Most Remote Companies Don’t Tell You about Remote Work »
Doist founder and CEO Amir Salihefendic tells it like it is:
There are people out there who love the travel-and-work lifestyle, but for many it’s nothing like social media would lead you to believe. As humans, we need real friends, loved ones, and a place where we belong. Extensive research shows that people with strong social ties live longer, healthier, happier lives. No matter what Airbnb might tell you, you cannot “belong anywhere” instantly. Community takes time to build — there are no shortcuts. […]
Remote workers shouldn’t feel like they have to travel to lead interesting, fulfilled lives. It’s ok to prioritize friendships, community, and your mental health over traveling. It may not look as glamorous on Instagram, but you may end up a lot happier for it.
I'm a remote writer and full-time RVer myself, so I feel qualified to say that the whole "Instagram glamour" thing is one notion that's quickly dispelled when you experience the realities of working while traveling. Everything Amir says in his piece about the importance of real, human community is spot-on.
18th Century Cooking: Early American Ginger Beer »
I'll take almost any opportunity to link to a video from the Townsends YouTube channel, because I find them all so interesting. This recent one walks you through the making of homemade ginger beer using a mix of ideas from early American recipes. Doesn't look too terribly difficult either, though still not quite as foolproof as homemade mead.
+ Here's another Townsends recipe video I enjoyed: 1780's Dutch Oven Pot Roast
Apple Frames: A Shortcut for Framing Screenshots from Every Apple Device »
As someone who writes a lot about apps for all kinds of Apple Devices, Federico Viticci's zero-configuration "Apple Frames" shortcut is a gift from the heavens:
The new Apple Frames shortcut can apply device frames to screenshots taken on the following devices:
- iPhone 6 and 6 Plus
- iPhone 7 and 7 Plus
- iPhone 8 and 8 Plus
- iPhone X
- iPhone XS and XS Max
- Apple Watch Series 4 (44mm model)
- iPad Pro (12.9" model)
- MacBook Pro (Retina, 13" model)
- iMac (5K model)
Notably missing from the list above are 9.7" and 10.5" iPads. Fingers crossed that those get added at some point!
Offbeat Animated GIFs by Chris Phillips »
I discovered Australian animator/illustrator Chris Phillips' delightfully cartoony loop animations via Kai Brach's Dense Discovery newsletter (formerly known as Offscreen Dispatch), and I could just watch them for hours:
A Hidden Source of Power »
Been a while since I've linked to anything from Leo Babauta's Zen Habits blog. A recent one of his struck a chord in me:
Almost every one of us gives away our power, unthinkingly.
For example:
- Someone does something inconsiderate or infuriating that frustrates or angers you. You fume about it for hours. You've given this person the power to make you frustrated and angry, to ruin your day, often without them even realizing it.
- You are lonely because you are alone, no longer with the partner who broke up with you. You have given away your power to feel loved to someone else, who perhaps doesn't want to give you that love.
- You walk into a social gathering and hope to impress people, to gain their approval, to be liked. You've given away your power of being approved to others, who don't even know they have a responsibility to validate you.
- You are still angry at your parents (or one of your parents) for the crappy way they raised you, or for certain things they did that screwed you up. You've given away your power to shape your own life, to people who haven't been responsible for raising you for years, since you became an adult.
Classical Piano Music Comes Alive with Light Visualizations »
Rion Nakaya of The Kid Should See This shared a very cool series of visual piano performances by pianist "Rousseau":
Played with a reactive visualizer tool—a set up that mixes After Effects animations with a piano and LEDs that are connected “via Arduino to the piano’s MIDI output”—Franz Liszt's La Campanella comes alive with light.
My son and I have enjoyed watching these and letting our heads explode a bit. Guitar Hero ain't got nothin' on this guy.
Neat Stuff We've Published Recently
- This week's guide: "Five of Our Favorite Jigsaw Puzzles"
- Last week's guide: "5 New Books for Bettering Yourself or Your Business"
- Make your morning pour-over ritual a simply enjoyable one: OXO Good Grips Glass Pour-Over Coffee Set
- Pens to be displayed, not hidden: Inventery’s Brass “Mechanical Pen” + Stand Collection
- Our favorite fake web design union is back in business: United Pixelworkers are Back, and They’ve Got the Goods You’ve Been Missing
- A dry, clean place to sit — anywhere, anytime: Matador Pocket Blanket 2.0
- A rainbow in every pencil: Stubby Pencil Studio’s Black Wood Rainbow Pencils
- Organize all those LEGOs and make cleanup a breeze: “Swoop Bags” Toy Storage Bag + Play Mat
Got any suggestions for articles, videos, stories, photographs, and any other links you think we should be posting in our weekly Quality Linkage? Please do let us know on Twitter.