Welcome to Human Pursuits, the column that features need-to-know names and stories in media and other creative spaces. Today, more quick lore to celebrate a milestone, and some more updates from Friends of the Newsletter, including Youth Lagoon, Alyssa Vingan, Daisy Alioto, and more.
I know that in this age of relentless scale, the idea of celebrating anything less than an astronomical success might seem silly, but Human Pursuits has gained several new subscribers in the past month, and it feels like a milestone.
For a long time, this newsletter was only read by people I know IRL. Somebody would hear about Human Pursuits — usually from me — and would graciously subscribe.
It never occurred to me that strangers would want to read anything I had written.
Thank you.
In 2023, I created a zine that not a lot of people read. Its centrepiece was an essay about my wife, and how I knew she was the one because she made me feel seen.
I wrote:
Over time, I've come to realize that this feeling was just regular anxiety. "Feeling unseen" was my way of communicating that I felt like I wasn't living up to some imagined standard. That I felt a sort of internal pressure to be something more than I was. To be the platonic ideal of myself. More normal, more successful, more perfect. I spent a lot of time imagining a different life for myself, and even more time waiting for someone to come along and give me permission to pursue it…
If feeling unseen is just a form of anxiety, then I think feeling seen is really just self-confidence. The ability to show up for yourself and the people around you. To shine your light unapologetically in all directions…
Human Pursuits is not a 360° view of my life, but if you read it even somewhat regularly, you know me better than most people.
With this in mind, here’s more quick lore about Ethan from Human Pursuits, as a little treat.
I’ve been a journalist for more than a decade, but before that, I switched jobs a lot. More than the average person. At last check, I have been gainfully employed by more than 30 different corporations. A lot of these jobs were normal. Grocery clerk, pizza delivery driver, barista. Others were more random. I apprenticed as an electrician for half a summer. I worked as a mover, which involved me packing up the homes of military families who had recently been relocated. I also did highway construction. That job took me to the Northwest Territories, which was cool.
I failed one class in university because I missed the final. Political science 101. The worst part is that I was on campus studying while everyone wrote it. I got the times mixed up. It took me another decade to get my calendar in order.
I’m colour blind. People tend to find this very amusing. They like to ask me what colours I can see. As if I can tell the difference (it mostly applies to shades of red and green).
You already know my first album, but the first concert I ever saw was 98° featuring Jessica Simpson’s ex Nick Lachey. My attendance wasn’t exactly by choice. They played the fairgrounds in London, ON, and we were already there. I mostly remember how uncomfortable the amphitheater’s concrete seating was.
For a brief two-year period in my teens, I seriously contemplated becoming a professional wrestler. I did not wrestle in high school.
Oh Messy Life
ICYMI: Last week’s interview was with Sonia from Alien Boy. I didn’t post an outtake because I published everything that was said, but I do have one small afterthought: good inputs make all of your outputs better. Sonia studied every part of American Idiot, and it made her a better songwriter. There’s a craft to that that I admire.
This week’s reading included in conversation with Raven Myers, on the passing of time, on The Rehearsal finale, on “Are Straight Guys Ready For Speedo Summer?” in GQ, and on graduation watches (I was curious).
It appears Trevor Powers from Youth Lagoon is back in the studio.
“A new book has entered the reading pile”: book, Be the Bombshell: What Love Island Teaches Us About Dating, is now available. She went on Love to See It with Emma and Claire to promote it.
Speaking of pods – I enjoyed and Francis Zierer’s appearance on This is TASTE.
Total Goner: Max Tani co-interviewed Chris Black a couple weeks ago. They discussed a lot of things, but the bit about gatekeepers and institutions received the most attention. It had me thinking: Who are the gatekeepers of the future? What media brands are around today that will last 80 years?
Always gonna be another mountain 🏔 Happy belated birthday Dylan! Happy belated birthday Goose!
Proper Chune
It’s been five years since The 1975 released Notes on a Conditional Form.
I wanted to write something about the album’s sprawling nature and how it’s probably my favourite piece of (unintentional) pandemic art, but life has been a little chaotic post-Paris, and I never got around to it.
That said, it’s worth exploring. I Think There’s Some Chune You Should Know.
My next guest is…
Playwright and occasional performer Ben Firke. His full-length production, Rich Beyond Our Wildest Dreams, is being shown at this year’s Atlanta Fringe Festival. Tickets here.
Meme machine
how much cum could a cumchk cum
