Howdy! It’s been awhile since I’ve shared a Notebook.
This one has music videos, links, snippets of other work, plus updates.
CDK - Somebody That I Used To Know by Gotye / Music Video
CDK Company is a dance troupe in Denmark. I’m fascinated by their edgy, artful choreography in this video.
Directed and arranged by Sergio Reis.
TURNING THE TABLES ON AI | Essay Recommendation
The team at IA Writer has published a number of excellent essays about Artificial Intelligence and the future of writing. (IA Writer is an industry-favorite writing tool used by many.)
One of their recurring themes is that a subtle danger of AI is that leads users to “think less.” That the hard work of writing and creating goes hand in hand with the necessary human practice of thinking.
AI has one trait: It makes everything the same. Every tech company now offers more or less the same service: “Think less.” How about Apple? Think different? Not anymore.
Tech companies big and small sell AI as something that thinks for us. It does replace thought with statistics—but it is not intelligent. No one knows what the future will bring. But is a future without thought a better future?
Read the full piece: TURNING THE TABLES ON AI.
A while back I shared that my wife
had entered me into a four-round fiction writing contest for Christmas. Depending on placement in each round, participants may or may not advance to another round. She agreed to do it with me. Roughly 7,000 participants.Updates:
We both placed in the top third in our groups of thirty in round one—and advanced to the second round. Then, we both placed in the top fifth in our groups of thirty in round two—and advanced to the third round!
Last weekend, round three, we had 48 hours to write another short story. As with every round, the genre, a main character, and primary theme was assigned to each of us.
It has been so much fun! One of the best gifts ever.
My randomly-assigned genres have really cracked me up. First: Fairy Tale, then Drama, and most recently: Romance!
Here are our first two stories from round one:
The Treasure by Lana Shaw (Thriller)
Claire gazed at the wall, memories washing over her like the rivers Forrest loved. She couldn't bring herself to take any of it down. Years’ worth of collected maps, photos, and post-its stared back. Forrest’s poem hung framed, and beside it scribbled notes -- every diagrammed line branched out like a tree, every word dissected and unpacked like clusters of fruit. It was a part of her now.
The Weight of Words by Matt Shaw (Fairy Tale)
Tom began the day as he always did. A plunge into the river behind his cottage. Coffee percolating on the stove. He pulled on his favorite slippers and began to work. Today he must finish a set of journals for Old Man Badger and his entire family. Thick pages for sharp claws.
We will be able to publish the second round stories soon.
A Simple Reframing | Essay
I wrote this essay recently for
: the outdoor company that I’m starting with . Our mission is “Inner Movement through The Great Outdoors.”We are sharing on Substack around themes of outdoor adventure, mindful living, and purposeful engagement with technology. Plus trip reports, gear reviews, and more. Please sign up, and contribute your own work!
And—this is really the heart of it—we are leading multi-day backpacking trips designed to achieve meaningful inner movement, focused on things like intentional living and trauma recovery.
In the essay published yesterday, I reflected on how a small shift in perspective can have a big impact.
One side of the sandwich was blackened and burnt. For a moment I wasn’t sure what to do with it, then I reminded myself that if I were camping right now, this would be delicious and satisfying. So I ate it, every bite. It was delicious and satisfying. Blackened grilled cheese is probably a menu item somewhere!
Monsters by James Blunt | Music Video
This song and powerful music video has incredible resonance for me.
Several days ago I visited my 97-year-old grandfather in his home. He’s now permanently in bed, sleeping most of the time. His life has been full, vibrant, and diverse. Now it seems to be coming to a close.
We shared a precious moment on that visit: as I hovered over him, reciting the 23rd Psalm, he suddenly opened his eyes, saw me, smiled the biggest smile I’ve ever seen from him, and said, “Hey,” while smiling the whole time.
Tomorrow is Father’s Day.
Happy Father’s Day—to my dad, Bill Shaw —deep gratitude, affection, and love!
Thanks for sharing all of this Matt. I wasn't going to read the articles but then I listened to a YouTube video about how to be a more interesting person and I came back to it. The video explained that you open up to people who give you clues that they understand you, and I thought of you immediately. Thanks for understanding me. I'm glad I read your newsletter!
This is fantastic! You and Christopher know each other! I hope your new venture is all you hope and more. What a lovely offering.