Looking Sideways: 10 Things
The value of storytelling, a brilliant piece on Georgia, and a personal milestone achieved.
1. I recorded some thoughts on the Sidetracked column on the value of storytelling I shared last week, on whether brands just follow what they think is popular (spoiler alert: I think yes), and what the ensuing debate says about the type of storytelling we actually value these days.
10 Things will always be free, but it takes a lot of effort, love and curiosity to pull this thing together each week.
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2. Giving myself a tentative public pat on the back for achieving a mid-term/mid-life goal. I’ve been taking running a little more seriously over the last year or so, with the extremely vague idea that I’d try and run 10k in under an hour. So it was really nice this morning to tick this one off a month or so before my big 50th birthday (53:35 if you’re asking. What have I turned into?)
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3. Timber Timbre are a really important band to me, so I’m really devastated to hear the news of Taylor Kirk’s outrageously premature death.
4. Who says activism doesn’t work? A concerted social media campaign in Cornwall seems to have convinced the council to end the proposed use of glyphosate.
5. My pal Keme has written a brilliant piece about our recent trip to Georgia which complements my own piece perfectly. (Yes, that is me in the pic)
6. So Robert Capa had an especially hectic D-Day then. (Taken from Stephen Ambrose’s excellent history of D-Day which I’m currently reading).
7. Finally, some good news. Pearl Jam fund fan’s none-profit music academy on the quiet.
8. Congratulations to my pal Si Belson on the forthcoming launch of his new House of Maiden Chinwag podcast. If you’re into the core end of the snowboard scene, you’re going to love this.
9. I posted a short video of some Asian hornets we trapped here in Normandy, which caused everyone on Instagram to lose their minds. So I thought I’d share it here. (Viewer caution advised - they’re grim little fellas)
10. Finally, a question: what’s the best book you’ve read this year? (The Pretender, above, is mine; see my whole 2026 list thus far here).
I need some new inspiration, so let me know in the comments below.
Love 10 things! I had not listened to timber timbre before.. and they are awesome!! So sad to hear about the passing of Taylor.
Mayflies is still rattling around my head and heart. Thank you for that recommendation. I reread Anna Burns’s Milkman every year. Not sure if it’s been on a past list of yours. Cryptic in all the right ways. Thanks for Looking Sideways!