The Dice — 033

I applied for a job this week, not something I have done very often but the position is unique as is the company. The last question of the application asked me to share my interests and hobbies. I had not created a list like this in a while so I spent some time considering what grabbed my curiosity. Turns out, there’s probably too much that I’m interested in. The list was exhausting but authentic and genuine. That range is reflected here in The Dice for better or worse. Drafting this issue, I’m reminded that having a focus helps make publications more successful. I probably should do that here but then I’d have to figure out what this is all about. I’m not sure if that’s necessary here but for those of you who have been with this experiment since the beginning, I’d love to hear from you.

Enjoy the rest of your Sunday.

The Departed, Lying in State is a look back at “photos of the solemn tradition that honors our late Presidents.” The photo essay begins with the first photograph taken of a president lying in state under the Capital Rotunda in 1881 and continues through history ending with two incredible photos. The first is of President Carter lying in state by Andrew Harnik and the last of photographer Frank Wolfe personally observing the president he served for nine years, LBJ. A powerful and moving essay.

A key element of these ceremonies that I find fascinating is the military honor guards and pallbearers. The coordinated march they perform in taking presidents up the stairs of the capital building is incredible to watch when you consider the average casket weighs 600 lbs. While those serving are volunteers, members of these elite units must pass stringent tests of physical strength and they are hand-selected during the application process. President Carter’s ceremony marked the debut of members from the United States Space Force.

Matt Klein dresses down traditional media and their misunderstanding of the decline they are knee-deep in. While he illustrates his point with a moment in time on The Tonight Show there are much deeper impacts to consider. “Today’s and tomorrow’s crises—from inequality and climate collapse to war and systemic illness—cannot get addressed unless we, and those in power, fundamentally understand how our media systems operate. And too many currently don’t. Or want to.” To quote the Costco Boys: Boom!

If you think the world is weird now, hold on to your butts. Matt writes, “Thanks to AI, further social fragmentation, consensus collapse, the ludicrous pace of the internet, and a digitally proficient Gen Alpha, in the years to come, media—and with that, culture holistically—will only get more perplexing and therefore 1. harder to decode and 2. harder to proficiently operate within.” I never imagined I would see it in my lifetime but we’re 20 minutes away from “live on Network 23” becoming a reality.

Speaking of Max Headroom, the character made two short, unauthorized appearances in 1987 on live television in Chicago. The television signals for WGN and WTTW were hacked—0verpowered–interrupting regular programming. No one was ever caught for the incident.

”Research has shown that people quit their resolutions for the year by the second Friday of January.” This year Quitter’s Day landed on the 10th. How are you holding up? So far, so good at Storeyhouse. Since we’re still wading into 2025 and there is plenty of time to keep working towards personal improvement, I’m inspired to share three links that caught my attention from Makoism’s recent issue of Espresso Shots (You really should subscribe if you haven’t already). DDoS’ing Yourself with To-dos and Reminders is a reflection piece on what we do to organize ourselves appropriately to “help with [a] healthy lifestyle.” How to Be Healthier Without Really Trying makes the case for better breathing. “Most of us don’t hit that perfect 5.5 second inhale or exhale because we breathe too quickly. Most of us are also often stressed. Those things are related.” The last one is very stoic. One phrase that can help you through anything is a reminder that re-positioning our mindset can make a huge difference. “‘Oh, neat!’ is your get out of Hell faster phrase.”

One more piece of advice: “In every life, we have some trouble, but when you worry you make it double. Don't worry, be happy.”

Your favorite newsletter’s favorite newsletters is a "guide and network map [of] 135 newsletters recommended by more than 50 writers, spanning topics from animation to martial arts to Rhode Island food culture.” Rhode Island what now? Anyway, the comprehensive list offers a catalog of publications devoted to a wide array of curious interests. More evidence that the Internet is Tokyo. As I know it matters to some folks these days, it should be noted that it appears all of these publications are using another of the aforementioned bromospaean platforms, Substack. For more newsletter goodness, check out the Amazing Newsletters directory and this catalog of publications from the good people at Ghost. 

Somewhat related, here are “20 of the best books entering the public domain in 2025.”

As social networks run by bromosapiens are experiencing rapid unscheduled disassembly, Mastodon is taking a big step to protect its future. “Decentralized social network Mastodon has announced plans to transfer its ownership to a new nonprofit entity. Ownership of Mastodon will move away from the control of CEO Eugen Rochko, in contrast to the power exerted by other social media CEOs like Meta cofounder Mark Zuckerberg and X owner Elon Musk.” This is the way.

Deleteing Twitter is so 2024. If you want to be cool in the new year then say goodbye to Facebook, Threads, Instagram, and anything else owned by Meta. Do you hear that? It’s your therapist agreeing with me. At the very least take steps to limit how much the evil company mines and sells your personal data. But seriously, kill your Faceinstathreads accounts now.

To celebrate National Soup Month, General Mills turned chicken soup into a hard candy. The new product is billed as “soup you can suck on” and a “convenient, on-the-go soup experience.” Progresso promises their new soup drops will feel as if they “slurped a spoonful of Progresso’s iconic Chicken Noodle Soup that they know and love. That favorite flavor is packed into each drop — it’s like broth, savory veggies, chicken, soft egg noodles, and a hint of parsley.” Mmmm, yummy—said no one ever. However bad it likely is, nothing can be as bad as Ranch Dressing Soda.

Even more crazy but perfectly acceptable because Kit Kat is awesome and everyone knows it, here is a complete list of all the flavors offered in Japan. They really do make everything more awesome.

Published in Tacoma, Washington while being attacked by Spaghetti the cat who demanded attention.