Issue 6: Sunflowers, Friendship and Gratitude

how to make friends, practical tips for better photos, and the best interview ever

The initial versions, August 1888

Sunflowers (F453), first version: turquoise background

Sunflowers (F459), second version: royal-blue background

Sunflowers (F456), third version: blue green background

Sunflowers (F454), fourth version: yellow background

"It's a type of painting that changes its aspect a little, which grows in richness the more you look at it. Besides, you know that Gauguin likes them extraordinarily. He said to me about them, among other things: ‘that — ... that's... the flower’. You know that Jeannin has the peony, Quost has the hollyhock, but I have the sunflower, in a way."

– Vincent

In defense of San Fransisco

When people complain why San Francisco is a terrible place to live, they usually bring up the following 3 problems:

1. It’s overrun by tech

2. It’s unsafe

3. It’s artistically and culturally dead

In this essay, I will—go through each of these points and explain why everyone is WRONG about San Francisco!

I want a Fuji X100VI so bad

Practical Tips for Better Photos

Stick to one specific focal length!

How to Make Friends Where You Live

"My perspective is you can actually create a community very easily within wherever you live.” - Ziqi Deng

And she always respond like immediately, whoever ask any question. Yeah. Maybe that's what made the difference. But my feeling is this is something everybody likes and everybody wants. In Chinese we have a saying that routinely meaning that: farther apart family is not as good as your neighbor.

in another life...

This is why he won the Oscar.

He portrayed full happiness, contentment, love and life not because he is ignorant to cruelty of the world, but despite knowing it.

Ke Huy Quan is amazing. He really is.

Things about Talking to Strangers

I record every idea in a little notebook I carry in my purse—no matter how stupid and half-baked. And then once a week, I type the ideas up in an Apple Notes file. This file has hundreds of ideas.

When it's time to plan the next issue of my newsletter, I browse the idea list and ask myself, "What would be fun to learn about or explore this week?" That's it. That's the whole process.

Whipslash

With just a $3.3 million budget, and filmed in only 19 days.

Whiplash really goes to show how fantastic a movie can be in the right director's hands. Absolute masterpiece of a film.

Everything about Creating a Walk-and-Talk

A walk-and-talk is a moveable salon. A small group of people walk together for a week, having casual conversations side-by-side during most of the day. In the evening the group sits down to an intense hours-long discussion centered on a daily chosen topic by those present. A moderator keeps the conversation on that day’s single topic to sharpen it and make it memorable.

Dorky National Park Posters

On Brad Mehldau

I love how inspiring his journey and how the interview doesn’t downplay his efforts but rather dig further into it. Not many interviews out there are of this quality.

The short pieces he played are also so beautiful!