Seek The Substantial

Black Holes

Just go with me here for a bit. The Tungaska event was a large explosion on June 30, 1908, in Siberia, Russia. This explosion allegedly felled 80 million trees and took out 830 square miles of forest. You have to remember that this was 1908 and so this was before there were any atomic bombs or anything like that and generally, the thought is attributed to a “meteor air burst” or the explosion of an asteroid. The problem is that there’s no impact crater and that whatever happened, happened in the sky, however, there’s no evidence of any sort of asteroid. It’s the largest impact event in human history (human history, not history of planet Earth).

So I’m bopping along and doing my own thing and come across this Radiolab episode about the event and there’s this thought that this wasn’t a meteor or anything of the sort, but a micro black hole. the entire idea of a black hole being on the planet and this actually happening seems unbelievable, but the theory is that a black hole hit Earth and this black hole is the size of a hydrogen atom and perhaps come from the big bang that started the universe and creates primordial black holes that have been around since that big bang but those primordial black holes have have shrunk over time. It is the size of an atom, but can have the mass of an asteroid. That sounds unbelievable, something being so dense as that.

Books

Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar: One more quote because it seems particularly relevant:

“When asked about the difficulties of sculpture, Michelangelo said, “It is easy. You just chip away all the stone that isn’t David.” It’s simple to cut things out of a life. You break up with a shitty partner, quit eating bread, delete the Twitter app. You cut it out, and the shape of what’s actually killing you clarifies a little. The whole Abrahamic world invests itself in this promise: Don’t lie, don’t cheat, don’t fuck or steal or kill, and you’ll be a good person. Eight of the ten commandments are about what thou shalt not. But you can live a whole life not doing any of that stuff and still avoid doing any good. That’s the whole crisis. The rot at the root of everything. The belief that goodness is built on a constructed absence, not-doing. That belief corrupts everything, has everyone with any power sitting on their hands. A rich man goes a whole day without killing a single homeless person and so goes to sleep content in his goodness. In another world, he’s buying crates of socks and Clif bars and tents, distributing them in city centers. But for him, abstinence reigns.”

The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley: Another winner. Really fun and inventive and the message is outstanding. Basically it is a bit sci-fy, but also historical novel that is combined in the best ways. Best line:

“Forgiveness and hope are miracles.”

Beautyland by Marie-Helene Bertino: Another absolute banger, that’s two books in a row written by a woman and subconsciously I have trended towards men, but made an effort and was greatly rewarded. I didn’t know what to think about Beautyland when it started, but it delivered. An alien is sent to Earth to report back to her planet. Adina is different and the way that she thought reminded me so much of my own child, Fitsum. He is so incredibly unique. We should cherish those individuals who are truly thinking outside the box.

“People with money list what they did without. Poor people list what they had.”

“Grief is a bad mirror. It shows you manipulated images of yourself, your will, and the future. It cannot show you how the small work you do will add up to yourself. Inch by inch.”

Running Things

Treadmill. My treadmill, after maybe a decade of owning it, has finally broken. Actually, I think it still works, but it doesn’t sound good. I will get it worked on or buy a new treadmill. I get a ton of use out of it and running on it is very easy.

Outside. With a broken treadmill, I have run outside and it has been good. The thing that I’ve always liked about the treadmill is that it forces you to run faster than you maybe comfortable and if you are trying to improve, then

A/V

Arcane, Seasons 1 and 2: Fits and I finally finished this and season 1 was great, a thrill ride the entire way, but season 2 got off-track for me. It is a beautiful story, but there was so much going on season 2 and I just wasn’t sure what to think about everything happening.

Slow Horses, Season 2 and 3: If you watch one show, this is it. I think I have described it before, but it is about of reject MI6 agents in British intelligence and it’s just fantastically done. Gary Oldman is fantastic, but the entire cast knows their roles and they are great at all of them.

Fountain of Youth: This is the new Guy Ritchie flick and it’s a fun ride. Watched it with the boys last night and it’s not must-see, but it is a good movie.

Life

Me: Miranda and I celebrated 20 years of marriage. I love her with all of my heart. Work is work and my office is moving to Richardson which is an hour+ commute for me and I am not looking forward to it, but I don’t work for myself.

Fitsum: He’s finished the 9th grade and could not be more proud of him. He took AP Human Geography, made all A’s except for 1 B. He’s already starting Spanish II for summer school, has band things, plus his cross-country training a few days a week. He’s a machine.

Youssouf: Finished the 7th grade and much like Fitsum, made all A’s and 1 B. Add in the athletic stuff and it was a terrific year for Yo. Currently we are in the midst of basketball, traveling to Kansas City and Bryan thus far with a trip to Cincinnati at the end of June. He’s a dominant player and changes the game. He’s dunking in warm-ups but not in a game just yet.