PRODUCTION

Drawing

Augsburg—I’ve been working on this sketch of a building in Augsburg, Germany.

Patches—I’ve got some ideas floating around on swag for my unit, and we’re to the point where we’re looking to get something going. I’ve gotta commit soon!

Writing

Wikipedia—I occasionally like to contribute to articles. Here are some of the tweaks I’ve recently made

• Matthew S. Holland—I fixed the hyperlink to his book, Bonds of Affection: Civic Charity and the Making of America—Winthrop, Jefferson, and Lincoln
• Rose Datoc Dall—I added the book she compiled, Expressions of Jesus: Cultural Representations of the Savior of the World
• Tim Ferriss—I added his new card game, Coyote

Website

I’m going to add a portfolio page, especially with the winding down of my side-business. I need a place to capture all the different things I’ve been up to. I have draft already from website editions past, but it needs an overhaul. I’m imagining a page you can scroll through a page of visual tiles highlighting a broad range of my interests and endeavors.

Build

Kitchen Drawer—I fixed a kitchen drawer after my daughter broke it. I had long postponed fixing it, but my wife wanted it done. I complained off-handedly once why it always lands on me to fix things around the house, and she said she would handle it…by hiring someone. Touché. The reverse psychology worked, and I was able to think through and execute a solution pretty quickly. It’s still a little askew, but that’s a future Jonny problem, and we regained some space in our storage-constrained kitchen.

CONSUMPTION

Read

Col Robin Olds—This guy had an insane career, and I had never heard of him until this past week. He was a WWII ace, missed Korea, and retired after Vietnam as a triple-ace! Here are three excerpts I really liked:

“Anybody who doesn’t have fear is an idiot. It’s just that you must make the fear work for you. Hell, when somebody shot at me, it made me madder than hell, and all I wanted to do was shoot back.”

Robin Olds was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel on February 20, 1951, and then Colonel on the 15th of April, 1953, while just thirty years of age, Olds served unenthusiastically in several staff assignments until finally returning to flying in 1955.

On September 30, 1966, Olds took command of the 8th Tactical Fight Wing based at Ubon Royal Thai Air Force Base. The now 44-year-old colonel immediately placed himself on the flight schedule as a rookie pilot under officers junior to himself, then challenged them to train him properly because he would soon be leading them. Thus setting the tone for the kind of command Olds brought to the 8th.

Part 2: Pmarca Guide to Career Planning: Skills and education by Marc Andreesen—I loved this article, because it focuses on getting a technical bachelor’s degree and then making yourself formidable with one or two soft skills that really set you apart. I’m hands-down a generalist, and I also took my second position to work for a manager that I’ve maintained a long relationship with (I even got her to apply to be my bosses boss in a new role after leaving her team—and she got the job!). Here’s an excerpt that reminds me of her:

Early in your career, make sure you are working for a great manager—you’ll know her when you see her in action—and then ask her to teach you how to do it.

The Democrats’ Michelle Obama problem by Christian Paz—We’re in a weird limbo period where there is no obvious contender for the Democratic Party’s presidential candidate. Granted both Presidents Obama and Trump were dark horses that took their party by surprise, so maybe it’s not that big of deal, but it’s a unique situation I’m interested in seeing play out.

Watch

General Conference—No talk stood out in particular, but I loved what amounted to a weekend on the couch with family focused on Jesus Christ.

Black Hawk Down—I spent several evenings this past week watching 30 mins or so while on the treadmill in that period between putting the girls to bed and not wanting to go to bed myself. In that state of too-tired-to-be-productive, I would throw this on and walk.

Listen

• Song: “NIAMOS! (Chandrilian Club Mix)” by Nicholas Britell and Brandon Roberts (Spotify | Apple Music | YouTube)
  • This song is such a banger. It is even more intense in the lead-up to when we hear it in Season 2 of Andor and all the emotions tied to that episode.
• Album: “I Love You So F****ing Much” by Glass Animals (Spotify | Apple Music | YouTube)
  • 2024 album that I’ve come to really enjoy. It’s got some bangers!
• Podcast: #239 Dan Driscoll – U.S. Secretary of the Army | Shawn Ryan Show (Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTube)
  • Ya know, I was skeptical at first listening to Shawn (hit or miss in my book) paired with the SECARMY (a political appointee) talking politics, Army, and ATF, but they hit on a lot of procurement issues and not dealing with status quo that I appreciate. In fact, I need to just post it already, but my essay in Captains Career Course dealt with long production cycles preventing rapid innovation.

Learn

Swimming—I’ve been taking swim lessons, and I’ve experienced a lot of rookie gains! Working with a coach, too, has been amazing. In fact, he’s been so observational and targeted in his recommendations that in just 3 sessions (one more to go), my confidence in the water has increased dramatically to the point where I would consider including swimming in my normal routine and maybe even working up to a triathlon at some point—and I’ve always been leery of water! Swimming’s been on my list of fears to conquer because (1) it’s a basic life skill, and (2) it’s great for fitness into old age. I’ve also been able to purchase a minimal amount of gear for less than $100—swimming jammers, goggles, a swim cap, a snorkel, and fins—which have made an enormous impact in confidence and technique.

Ponder

Quote: “If people aren’t laughing at your dreams, your dreams aren’t big enough.” ~Grayson Marshall

As I am slowly refining this newsletter, I’d love feedback on the format and content. Reach out on X or LinkedIn 👋