Explore all emails from Letters Of Note

View this post on the web at https://news.lettersofnote.com/p/curse-the-blasted-jelly-boned-swines Please join me in wishing the happiest of birthdays to the following letters, all written on the third day of a July gone by. It has never been very easy for me to live, though I am always very happy—maybe because I want so much to be happy. I like so much to live and I hate the idea of dying one day. And then I am awfully greedy; I want everything from life, I want to be a woman and to be a man, to have many friends and to have loneliness, to work much and write good books, and to travel and enjoy myself, to be selfish and to be unselfish... You see, it is difficult to get all which I want. And then when I do not succeed I get mad with anger. Simone de Beauvoir Letter to Nelson Algren 3rd July 1947 —Transatlantic Love Affair: Letters to Nelson Algren Curse the blasted, jelly-boned swines, the slimy, the belly-wriggling invertebrates, the miserable sodding rotters, the flaming sods, the snivelling, dribbling, dithering pulse-less lot that make up England today. They’ve got white of egg in their veins, and their spunk is that watery it’s a marvel they can breed. D. H. Lawrence Letter to Edward Garnett 3rd July 1912 —The Collected Letters of D. H. Lawrence I sometimes imagine that as one grows older one comes to live a role which as a young person one merely “played.” May Sarton Letter to Louise Bogan 3rd July 1955 —May Sarton: Selected Letters Tell me, what is the point of having an empty car park before 11.00 a.m.? To set up a car park to keep cars out until after 11.00 a.m. is asinine; to have an empty car park in a choked city is to increase the congestion; an empty space where a car should be parked is contrary to organisation and common sense. In other words, what is the point of having an empty car park? Again, if they had a large notice at the entrance of the car park which you could not miss when you went in, saying ‘no parking until after 11.00 a.m.’ this would also help the situation. As I say, it is outrageous, therefore I have no intention of paying the fine, I will not be in Court on the day requested and I shall not pay any extra fine as the result of my non-appearance. Therefore your only way out is to send me to prison. I will gladly do this and make use of the media television and newspapers to put across my point of view. Spike Milligan Letter to the Magistrates’ Court 3rd July 1973 —Spike Milligan: Man of Letters May I say now at once that I will not tolerate any tinkering with the personal nomenclature. Nor with the name/word Hobbit. I will not have any more Hompen (in which I was not consulted), nor any Hobbel or what not. Elves, Dwarfs/ves, Trolls, yes: they are mere modern equivalents of the correct terms. But hobbit (and orc) are of that world, and they must stay, whether they sound Dutch or not... If you think I am being absurd, then I shall be greatly distressed; but I fear not altered in my opinions. The few people I have been able to consult, I must say, express themselves equally strongly… I am no linguist, but I do know something about nomenclature, and have specially studied it, and I am actually very angry indeed. J.R.R. Tolkien Letter to his publisher, Rayner Unwin 3rd July 1956 —The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien And finally… on this day in 1905, after attending a performance of Don Giovanni at the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden, the relentlessly grumpy playwright and critic George Bernard Shaw wrote the following letter of complaint to The Times. (Keep scrolling to watch this one being read for us at Letters Live [ https://substack.com/redirect/b64f6f95-8ce4-4ca0-919f-97d78c812611?j=eyJ1IjoiNzF4cDQwIn0.VLQsNiiAawz-DS2VtWTrcrG2IFeLIxnWNFcK9akSjpY ] by Benedict Cumberbatch.) July 3rd 1905 Sir, On Saturday night I went to the Opera. I wore the costume imposed on me by the regulations of the house. I fully recognise the advantage of those regulations. Evening dress is cheap, simple, durable, prevents rivalry and extravagance on the part of male leaders of fashion, annihilates class distinctions and gives men who are poor and doubtful of their social position (that is, the great majority of men) a sense of security and satisfaction that no clothes of their own choosing could confer, besides saving a whole sex the trouble of considering what they should wear on state occasions. Now let me describe what actually happened to me at the Opera. Not only was I in evening dress by compulsion, but I voluntarily added many graces of conduct as to which the management made no stipulation whatever. I was in my seat in time for the first chord of the overture. I did not chatter during the music nor raise my voice when the Opera was too loud for normal conversation. I did not get up and go out when the statue music began. My language was fairly moderate considering the number and nature of the improvements on Mozart volunteered by Signor Caruso, and the respectful ignorance of dramatic points of the score exhibited by the conductor and stage manager — if there is such a functionary at Covent Garden. In short, my behaviour was exemplary. At 9 o’clock (the Opera began at 8) a lady came in and sat down very conspicuously in my line of sight. She remained there until the beginning of the last act. I do not complain of her coming late and going early; on the contrary, I wish she had come later and gone earlier. For this lady, who had very black hair, had stuck over her right ear the pitiable corpse of a large white bird, which looked exactly if someone had killed it by stamping on the beast, and then nailed it to the lady’s temple, which was presumably of sufficient solidity to bear the operation. I am not, I hope, a morbidly squeamish person; but the spectacle sickened me. I presume that if I had presented myself at the doors with a dead snake round my neck, a collection of black beetles pinned to my shirtfront, and a grouse in my hair, I should have been refused admission. Why, then is a woman to be allowed to commit such a public outrage? Had the lady been refused admission, as she should have been, she would have soundly rated the tradesman who imposed the disgusting headdress on her under the false pretence that ‘the best people’ wear such things, and withdrawn her custom from him; and thus the root of the evil would be struck at; for your fashionable woman generally allows herself to be dressed according to the taste of a person who she would not let sit down in her presence. I once, in Drury Lane Theatre, sat behind a matinee hat decorated with the two wings of a seagull, artificially reddened at the joints so as to produce the illusion of being freshly plucked from a live bird. But even that lady stopped short of a whole seagull. Both ladies were evidently regarded by their neighbours as ridiculous and vulgar; but that is hardly enough when the offence is one which produces a sensation of physical sickness in persons of normal human sensibility. I suggest to the Covent Garden authorities that, if they feel bound to protect their subscribers against the dangers of my shocking them with a blue tie, they are at least equally bound to protect me against the danger of a woman shocking me with a dead bird. Yours truly, G. Bernard Shaw This newsletter continues to exist thanks to the generosity of its readers. If you haven’t already, and if you’re able, please consider becoming a paying subscriber [ https://substack.com/redirect/e7daa6a7-4084-4c64-b389-d0ab04fee4c3?j=eyJ1IjoiNzF4cDQwIn0.VLQsNiiAawz-DS2VtWTrcrG2IFeLIxnWNFcK9akSjpY ] or making a donation [ https://substack.com/redirect/5227f706-bb0c-47cf-96f1-41f2162d8d7d?j=eyJ1IjoiNzF4cDQwIn0.VLQsNiiAawz-DS2VtWTrcrG2IFeLIxnWNFcK9akSjpY ]. Or buy a book (of note) [ https://substack.com/redirect/49f889e6-c888-45c7-9d83-3108df02c697?j=eyJ1IjoiNzF4cDQwIn0.VLQsNiiAawz-DS2VtWTrcrG2IFeLIxnWNFcK9akSjpY ]. And if you can’t do any of that, please spread the word by sharing the newsletter with others. Thank you. Unsubscribe https://substack.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.uQthnFrEkli-6wUlWXs-HwsLH5oHya0UN11Wd3soOF0?

View this post on the web at https://news.lettersofnote.com/p/i-want-to-be-the-water-that-bathes Nothing really connects the letters below, but for one reason or another they’ve all been on my mind recently. I thought you might enjoy them too. I want to kiss you. I want our dream worlds to be one. I would like to see from your eyes, hear from your ears, feel with your skin, and kiss with your mouth. In order to see you from below I would like to be the shadow that is born from the soles of your feet and that lengthens along the ground upon which you walk. I want to be the water that bathes you, the light that gives you form, I wish that my substance were your substance, that your voice should come out of my throat so as to caress me from inside. Frida Kahlo Letter to Josep Bartolí 20th October 1946 —Translation by Hayden Herrera for Doyle New York How any woman with a family ever put pen to paper I cannot fathom. Always the bell rings and the baker calls. Virginia Woolf Letter to Quentin Bell 8th June 1930 —The Letters of Virginia Woolf, Vol. 4 Our so-called leaders speak of an “honorable” withdrawal from Vietnam, but there can be no honorable conclusion to such a dishonorable war. The only decent thing we can do now is to somehow compel those moral degenerates in the White House and Pentagon to stop their cowardly attack on Vietnam and then begin at once, as best we can, to help the survivors in that devastated land rebuild their farms, homes, villages, and cities, and reconstruct their shattered culture. If, that is, they would even be willing to accept aid from our bloody hands. Edward Abbey Letter to Arizona Daily Star 29th December 1972 —Postcards from Ed: Dispatches and Salvos from an American Iconoclast I know what I want: I want a life with people that is almost explosive in its excitement, fierce and hard and laughing and loud and gay as all hell let loose, and the rest of the time, I want them bloody damn well not to get any place near me, I want to be alone and do my work and my thinking by myself and let them kindly not come to call. Martha Gellhorn Letter to Hortense Flexner 22nd September 1941 —Selected Letters of Martha Gellhorn Sources closer to you than you may realize have told me that you have been making atrocious remarks about my cat. Ordinarily, I would not have believed these rumors, but recalling the way you have talked about cats in the past, I would not put it beneath you at all. Let me tell you something. Jimmy-boy. What you say has a way of getting back to me. If I hear that you have said one more thing about my cat, I am going to invite you to a fight in which I expect to beat out of you a fat amount of your yellow and treacherous shit. William Styron Letter to James Jones January 22, 1962 —Selected Letters of William Styron Your letter came as a blessing for indeed a man is blessed in his friends; and when I think of all the honest affections given me by men much too good for me I feel bitterly ashamed of my pessimism, of my ineradicable tendency to quarrel with fate. And in the depth of Your friendship You can find words that are sweeter than balsam to the soul of the scribe; after reading your messages I think a little better of myself and thus You confer on me not a small benefit O! Friend long unseen but never forgotten. Joseph Conrad Letter to E. L. Sanderson 24th May 1899 —The Collected Letters of Joseph Conrad, Volume 2 Many think pottery a little—a minor art. But no craft is minor, for whatever creative work we take up demands the whole of us—all our brains, strength, time & even soul. Anne Dangar Letter to Grace Crowley 27th November 1950 —Earth, Fire, Water, Air: Anne Dangar’s Letters to Grace Crowley, 1930-1951 Curse the blasted, jelly-boned swines, the slimy, the belly-wriggling invertebrates, the miserable sodding rotters, the flaming sods, the snivelling, dribbling, dithering pulse-less lot that make up England today. They’ve got white of egg in their veins, and their spunk is that watery it’s a marvel they can breed. D. H. Lawrence Letter to Edward Garnett 3rd July 1912 —The Collected Letters of D. H. Lawrence I shall think of you not only today but for weeks and weeks and only with love. Goodbye. If you knew how brave I am at not asking to see you. Dora Carrington Letter to Gerald Brenan 10th June 1922 —Carrington’s Letters: Her Art, Her Loves, Her Friendships This newsletter continues to exist thanks to the generosity of its readers. If you haven’t already, and if you’re able, please consider becoming a paying subscriber [ https://substack.com/redirect/56912292-a914-4df4-b799-0d454b5aaccf?j=eyJ1IjoiNzF4cDQwIn0.VLQsNiiAawz-DS2VtWTrcrG2IFeLIxnWNFcK9akSjpY ] or making a donation [ https://substack.com/redirect/6341dbfb-2093-4b68-92d4-26d14486bed4?j=eyJ1IjoiNzF4cDQwIn0.VLQsNiiAawz-DS2VtWTrcrG2IFeLIxnWNFcK9akSjpY ]. Or buy a book (of note) [ https://substack.com/redirect/da211005-a68d-4218-b61a-0c23bcdbd072?j=eyJ1IjoiNzF4cDQwIn0.VLQsNiiAawz-DS2VtWTrcrG2IFeLIxnWNFcK9akSjpY ]. And if you can’t do any of that, please spread the word by sharing the newsletter with others. Thank you. Unsubscribe https://substack.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.TijBKpXVbmMuxYb8dtN0DVeRK2iJwjgAdWvUAtLuKw8?

View this post on the web at https://news.lettersofnote.com/p/aids-is-not-a-disgrace-it-is-a-tragedy On this day in 1995, a year after her son, Mark, died of AIDS at the age of 31, Patsy Clarke wrote the following letter to Jesse Helms, a family friend and US senator whose hostility towards gay people and AIDS-related initiatives had made him one of the most controversial politicians in America. Helms’s heartless response, in which he suggested that Mark had been “playing Russian roulette with his sexual activity,” inspired Clarke to join forces with another grieving mother and co-found Mothers Against Jesse in Congress, a grassroots campaign dedicated to unseating him. June 5, 1995 Senator Jesse Helms U.S. Senate Washington, D.C. Dear Jesse, When my husband (and your strong friend) Harry Clarke died in a plane crash at the Asheville airport on March 9, 1987, you called me in the night. You told me of your sorrow at our loss and of what Harry had meant to you as a friend. You placed your praise for him and his principles in the Congressional Record. You sent me the flag flown over the Capitol in his memory. You did all of these things and I am grateful. Harry and I had a son, Mark, who was almost the image of his father, though much taller. He was blessed with great charm and intelligence, and we loved him. He was gay. On March 9, 1994, exactly seven years to the day that his father died, Mark followed him—a victim of AIDS. I sat by his bed, held his dear hand and sang through that long, last night the baby song that I had sung to all our children: “Rock-a-bye and don’t you cry, rock-a-bye little Mark...” A few days before he died, Mark said these words: “This disease is not beating me. When I draw my last breath I will have defeated this disease—and I will be free.” I watched him take his last breath and claim his freedom. He was 31. As I write these words, I relive the most difficult time of my life. The tears will smudge this if I don’t take care. No matter, I will type it so it is legible. My reason for writing to you is not to plead for funds, although I’d like to ask your support for AIDS research; it is not to accept a lifestyle which is abhorrent to you; it is rather to ask you not to pass judgment on other human beings as “deserving what they get.” No one deserves that. AIDS is not a disgrace, it is a TRAGEDY. Nor is homosexuality a disgrace; we so-called normal people make it a tragedy because of our own lack of understanding. Mark gave me a great gift. A quote returns to me from long-ago forensic days: “I have no lamp to light my feet save the lamp of experience.” I think Patrick Henry said it. Mark’s life and death have illuminated my own, and I am grateful for him. So that’s what this letter is about, and I hope I have written it well. I wish you had known Mark. His life was so much more eloquent than any words I might put on paper. I ask you to share his memory with me in compassion. Gratefully, Patsy M. Clarke Letter excerpted from the book, Keep Singing: Two Mothers, Two Sons, and Their Fight Against Jesse Helms [ https://substack.com/redirect/010d61c6-b52d-4d77-b88f-4d9caea1fd18?j=eyJ1IjoiNzF4cDQwIn0.VLQsNiiAawz-DS2VtWTrcrG2IFeLIxnWNFcK9akSjpY ]. This newsletter continues to exist thanks to the generosity of its readers. If you haven’t already, and if you’re able, please consider becoming a paying subscriber [ https://substack.com/redirect/012b3297-cfc0-47bd-a848-4f7655314af3?j=eyJ1IjoiNzF4cDQwIn0.VLQsNiiAawz-DS2VtWTrcrG2IFeLIxnWNFcK9akSjpY ] or making a donation [ https://substack.com/redirect/43b728d3-15f0-4467-9ebb-6798e8bc74da?j=eyJ1IjoiNzF4cDQwIn0.VLQsNiiAawz-DS2VtWTrcrG2IFeLIxnWNFcK9akSjpY ]. And if you can’t do any of that, please spread the word by sharing the newsletter with others. Thank you. Unsubscribe https://substack.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.Ur4OfnMlcCAq0lRiIwBAzOfCiOByaw4xkGY1mZrtR2M?

View this post on the web at https://news.lettersofnote.com/p/please-consider-my-own-position By June 1944, Winston Churchill had decided that directing the war from London was not enough. He wanted to witness the D-Day landings from HMS Belfast and, if possible, set foot in France soon after the troops had gone ashore. It was a risky plan, and one that alarmed those around him. In the end, the person who stopped him was King George VI. Written on this day in 1944, just days before D-Day, the following remarkable letter was the King's final attempt to persuade his Prime Minister to stay away from the front. June 2nd 1944 My Dear Winston, I want to make one more appeal to you not to go to sea on D day. Please consider my own position. I am a younger man than you, I am a sailor, & as King I am the head of all three services. There is nothing I would like better than to go to sea but I have agreed to stay at home; is it fair that you should then do exactly what I should have liked to do myself? You said yesterday afternoon that it would be a fine thing for the King to lead his troops into battle, as in old days; if the King cannot do this, it does not seem to me right that his Prime Minister should take his place. Then there is your own position. You will see very little, you will seem a considerable risk, you will be inaccessible at a critical time when vital decisions might have to be taken, & however unobtrusive you may be, your very presence on board is bound to be a very heavy additional responsibility to the Admiral & Captain. As I said in my previous letter, your being there would add immeasurably to my anxieties, & your going without consulting your colleagues in the Cabinet would put them in a very difficult position which they would justifiably resent. I ask you most earnestly to consider the whole question again, & not let your personal wishes which I very well understand lead you to depart from your own high standard of duty to the State. Believe me, Your very sincere friend, George R. I. This newsletter continues to exist thanks to the generosity of its readers. If you haven’t already, and if you’re able, please consider becoming a paying subscriber [ https://substack.com/redirect/3868b00a-d13f-4016-a6c0-8774268ed584?j=eyJ1IjoiNzF4cDQwIn0.VLQsNiiAawz-DS2VtWTrcrG2IFeLIxnWNFcK9akSjpY ] or making a donation [ https://substack.com/redirect/19a5f625-8e7d-40b6-bcb9-8e0b014a9080?j=eyJ1IjoiNzF4cDQwIn0.VLQsNiiAawz-DS2VtWTrcrG2IFeLIxnWNFcK9akSjpY ]. And if you can’t do any of that, please spread the word by sharing the newsletter with others. Thank you. Unsubscribe https://substack.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.8Hs2ScIFJcPb4SWr3ReSpztJ9iFEzIkNR5uG7I45SQQ?

View this post on the web at https://news.lettersofnote.com/p/you-dont-breathe-you-bubble What dreadful hot weather we have! It keeps me in a continual state of inelegance. Jane Austen Letter to Cassandra Austen 18th September 1796 —Jane Austen’s Letters We are having the most monstrous heatwave. I don’t dare translate the thermometer readings into Fahrenheit, but suspect that if it were body temperature our brains would have burned out like the motor of my little electric fan in the middle of last night — causing sheer dank heat to wake me. You can bet I was out early this morning to buy a new one — only to have the clerks in the first 4 electrical supply shops appear puzzled by my request: Electric fan, who would ever want such a thing? No, we don’t carry them. James Merrill Letter to Rosie 19th July 1973 —A Whole World: Letters from James Merrill Have you read in the papers about the terrific heat and drought? The heat was the worst I have ever felt, just couldn’t get away from it, day in and day out. Our grass was so burnt it looked like a shredded wheat biscuit. Thank God it ended a few days ago. Every one in the city looks half dead. Aline Bernstein Letter to Thomas Wolfe 18th August 1930 —My Other Loneliness: Letters of Thomas Wolfe and Aline Bernstein The sun becomes indignant at the broad-brimmed hats of the boys, so it curls down round them, and up under them. It ripples and crackles along the curbing at noon. . . Dead worms on the side walks fry and sizzle, and the upholstery of autos left in the street bakes and cracks and burns your breeches. The little thermometers on store fronts mount as best they can, and then give it up as a bad job and settle down to a steady 100°. E. B. White Letter to his parents 16th July 1922 —Letters of E. B. White ‘Is it hot?’ you ask. MURDER. I don’t mind heat as much as cold, intense degrees of either, that is, but this is like nothing I have ever endured, even in Chicago or New York in a ‘heat wave.’ It never lets up. The humidity is often higher than the temperature. The result is that one cannot quite stand to eat properly and it is impossible to sleep normally. One moves slowly through the days and nights, pretending to be more than half-alive. M. F. K. Fisher Letter to Ted Kennedy 28th February 1965 —M.F.K. Fisher: A Life in Letters I sweat all over the first sheet and had to start over. . . It has been hell hot now for three days. Wish you were here to sweat. I can out sweat all the big local sweaters and they are going to bring in outside competition and have me sweat derrier grosse motos. . . This is a shitty letter but its so damned hot. Ernest Hemingway Letter to Waldo Peirce 22nd July 1927 —The Letters of Ernest Hemingway, 1926–1929 Here we are in Delphi, all well except for Roger’s insides falling out and my skin peeling in great sores. The wind and sun, the bitter cold and violent heat, the driving all day along rocky or pitted roads, make one feel like a parboiled cactus. Virginia Woolf Letter to Vanessa Bell 2nd May 1932 —The Letters of Virginia Woolf, Volume 5 Did you know Billy McCann, who is now in Rio de Janeiro? They are in the midst of one of the most terrific heat-waves Brazil has ever known, and one midday, Billy was staring out of his window (which looks over the ocean) when he saw an enormous black and white procession advancing, two by two, for, it seemed miles, in a straight line on the water. As it came nearer, he saw that it consisted of polar bears, polar seals, walruses and/or sea elephants, and penguins. Poor boys and girls, they had been carried straight from the North Pole or the polar opposite number to the Gulf Stream. The authorities from the Zoo gathered them up in air-conditioned ambulances, and they are now sitting on blocks of ice at the Zoo, where they were welcomed with rapture. Edith Sitwell Letter to Benjamin Britten 18th February 1956 —The Letters of Edith Sitwell It’s been so frightfully hot here that I’ve been almost too weak to hold a pen, and even if I had been able, there was no ink — it had all evaporated into a cloud of black steam, and in that state it has been floating about the room, inking the walls and ceiling till they’re hardly fit to be seen Lewis Carroll Letter to 23rd May 1864 —The Selected Letters of Lewis Carroll Another heat wave is here and reminds me of last year at the same time. The heat is terribly dry and not at all like Montgomery and is so unexpected. The people feel deeply offended, as if they were being bombed. F. Scott Fitzgerald Letter to Zelda Fitzgerald 11th October 1940 —A Life in Letters Wake Island a hell hole of heat. . . I should go out and walk around and I dread it. It’s like swimming in warm blood, humidity 300 percent. You don’t breathe, you bubble. John Steinbeck Letters to Elaine Steinbeck September 1957 —Steinbeck: A Life in Letters Unsubscribe https://substack.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.icRV1jdYHz2La_keuiNplA5398Dl3p4xdd5ZGyi5mn8?

View this post on the web at https://news.lettersofnote.com/p/how-clever-and-capricious-you-are-6fd Today is the anniversary of a masterclass in dealing with trolls, before trolls had a name, by the great Hermione Gingold. Please enjoy, and keep scrolling to see this exchange being brought to life back in 2016 at Letters Live by Louise Brealey and Sophie Hunter. Which reminds me: tickets have just gone on sale for our next Letters Live show in New York, which is taking place on 14th May. Please come along if you can [ https://substack.com/redirect/bde0d1cf-627e-4f7f-ae66-9519c7daa8b0?j=eyJ1IjoiNzF4cDQwIn0.VLQsNiiAawz-DS2VtWTrcrG2IFeLIxnWNFcK9akSjpY ]! In 1950, English actress Hermione Gingold appeared on stage in London alongside Hermione Baddeley in Fallen Angels, a Noël Coward comedy in which—controversially at the time—its two female leads discussed pre-marital sex and adultery. Although it was a hit, even Coward was unimpressed with Charles Russell’s revival of the play, saying at the time: “I have never yet in my long experience seen a more vulgar, silly, unfunny, disgraceful performance.” Soon after the show opened, Gingold received a threatening letter from a disgusted member of the public. With no address at which to aim a reply, Gingold instead responded with a letter that was reprinted in her 1952 book, My Own Unaided Work. April, 1950 Dear Madam,  Unless something is done at once about your disgusting exhibition in the filthy play you appear in every night, I and several of my friends will do something very unpleasant about it. What you and your co-partner Hermione Baddeley do nightly in public is a slur on English womanhood. “Fallen Angels” is disgusting as a play, but your performance in it makes it loathsome. How the powers that be could permit such an exhibition is past the understanding of a God-fearing man who supports the present Government—and thanks God for them.  I give you fair warning to leave the play, or it will be the worse for you. Our wrath will strike at you in your home, or maybe during a performance at the theatre. A. Friend Ambassadors Theatre W.C.2. April 14th Dear Friend,  How clever and capricious you are, cloaking yourself in anonymity, and I must confess I cannot for the life of me guess which of my many friends you can be. You have sent my head spinning and my imagination whirling. Could you be found among my dear friends, intimate friends, close friends, childhood friends, pen friends, family friends, friends of a friend, friends in distress, friends who are closer than a brother, friends in need, or school friends? Your letter quite clearly shows that you are not illiterate, and therefore we can rule out my school friends. Your masterly command of the language banishes the thought that you could be found among my friends from overseas. Your witty criticism of my performance makes me think that I might find you among my nearest and dearest “bosom friends,” that is if you did not choose to address me as “Dear Madam”—a clever move this, and one that reduces my last thought to mere stupidity and you to a casual acquaintance, and yet I must banish the thought “casual acquaintance.” for how many people are there in London today who realise that my “co-partner,” as you wittily dub her, is none other than Hermione Baddeley, and by the way, she wants me to thank you for the facsimile letter you sent her, and say that she is getting on in years and feeble, and is not able to attend to her correspondence as she would wish, and so she cannot answer your letter personally.  An awful thought has dawned. It is all a joke, and you aren’t really my friend at all. I must try to dismiss this thought. It depresses me. To lose a friend like you in a few words, oh no.  So, dear anonymous friend, if this should chance to meet your eye, please keep your promise and come round one night—yes, and bring your friends, too, for I know intuitively that your friends will be my friends. Cordially yours,  Hermione Gingold  P.S. If you wish to strike at me with your wrath in my home, I am always in between ten-thirty and twelve in the morning, excluding Tuesday, which is a bad day, as a lot of tiresome tradespeople call for the same reason. You will easily recognize my apartment, for, apart from the number “85” marked in plain figures on the door, over the knocker there is a notice, "strike twice and wait, bell out of order.” Unsubscribe https://substack.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.SwDW_zZrD6GoDMjCYmPeZU5w1PpBfrAhawqcPyEKuzM?

View this post on the web at https://news.lettersofnote.com/p/oh-my-god-how-i-do-hate-species-and It was on this day in 1809 that one of my favourite haters was born. Celebrated biologist, naturalist, and holder of the intimidating title, ‘Father of Evolution,’ Charles Darwin was undoubtedly one of the most intelligent people ever to have graced this earth. But he was also just a person. A person who, according to his letters, was often irritable, overworked, and exasperated. And seasick. I hate every wave of the ocean. Charles Darwin Letter to his cousin, William Fox 15th February 1836 I loathe, I abhor the sea, & all ships which sail on it. Charles Darwin Letter to his sister, Susan Darwin 4th August 1836 I hate a Barnacle as no man ever did before, not even a Sailor in a slow-sailing ship. Charles Darwin Letter to William Fox 24th October 1852 Oh my God how I do hate species & varieties. Charles Darwin Letter to J. D. Hooker 11th March 1858 I am very tired, very stomachy & hate nearly the whole world. Charles Darwin Letter to Thomas Huxley 10th September 1860 I am very poorly today & very stupid & hate everybody & everything. Charles Darwin Letter to Charles Lyell 1st October 1861 I hate myself, I hate clover, and I hate bees. Charles Darwin Letter to John Lubbock 3rd September 1862 I am languid & bedeviled & hate writing & hate everybody. Charles Darwin Letter to J. D. Hooker 23rd June 1863 All of Darwin’s letters can be found at the wonderful website, Darwin Correspondence Project [ https://substack.com/redirect/62246580-4422-4936-8dc5-2e53916ba66e?j=eyJ1IjoiNzF4cDQwIn0.VLQsNiiAawz-DS2VtWTrcrG2IFeLIxnWNFcK9akSjpY ]. This newsletter continues to exist thanks to the generosity of its readers. If you haven’t already, and if you’re able, please consider becoming a paying subscriber [ https://substack.com/redirect/18a1eaf8-cfda-4dcf-a2e5-d30c8c3ee48b?j=eyJ1IjoiNzF4cDQwIn0.VLQsNiiAawz-DS2VtWTrcrG2IFeLIxnWNFcK9akSjpY ] or making a donation [ https://substack.com/redirect/2710a301-f0d8-4ede-88fe-62b51dad9cb4?j=eyJ1IjoiNzF4cDQwIn0.VLQsNiiAawz-DS2VtWTrcrG2IFeLIxnWNFcK9akSjpY ]. And if you can’t do any of that, please spread the word by sharing the newsletter with others. Thank you. Unsubscribe https://substack.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.TlH-pYVXcISbe-D5k3UpE9kFAVhvHl7sttU-2Rf8TzY?

View this post on the web at https://news.lettersofnote.com/p/we-are-all-sailing-away-to-the-sea Please join me in wishing the happiest of birthdays to the following letters, all written on the tenth day of a February gone by. Sorry I was so glum. I’m in a cursed mood and can’t bear the human face. Virginia Woolf Letter to Ethel Smyth 10th February 1933 —The Letters of Virginia Woolf As to your notion of an allegory, there is none. Charlotte’s Web is a tale of the animals in my barn, not of the people in my life. When you read it, just relax. Any attempt to find allegorical meanings is bound to end disastrously, for no meanings are in there. I ought to know. E. B. White Letter to John Detmold 10th February 1953 —Letters of E. B. White My husband, T. S. Eliot, loved to recount how late one evening he stopped a taxi. As he got in, the driver said: “You’re T. S. Eliot.” When asked how he knew, he replied: “Ah, I’ve got an eye for a celebrity. Only the other evening I picked up Bertrand Russell, and I said to him: ‘Well, Lord Russell, what’s it all about;’ and, do you know, he couldn’t tell me.” Valerie Eliot Letter to The Times 10th February 1970 —The Times: Great Letters Since books are to libraries what asphalt is to highway departments, I assume that Indiana is also asking donations from suppliers of asphalt for her roads. Or has it been decided that asphalt is worth good money, and that books are not? Kurt Vonnegut Letter to Charles Ewick, Indiana State Library 10th February 1983 —Kurt Vonnegut: Letters The civilization of any country may always be measured by the degree of equality between men and women; and society will never come truly into order until there is perfect equality and copartnership between them in every department of human life. Lydia Maria Child Letter to Mrs. S. M. Parsons 10th February 1877 —Lydia Maria Child: Selected letters, 1817-1880 I have been much moved by your letter; and the pleasure it has given me has some little sorrowful ingredient in it. In the strife and struggle of this great world where most of us lose each other so strangely, it is impossible to be spoken to out of the old times without a softened emotion. You so belong to the days when the qualities that have done me most good since, were growing in my boyish heart that I cannot end my answer to you lightly. We are all sailing away to the sea, and have a pleasure in thinking of the river we are upon, when it was very narrow and little. Charles Dickens Letter to his first love, Maria Beadnell 10th February 1855 —The Selected Letters of Charles_Dickens I’ve got no advice on these up and down times of elation & depression you seem to have, but I can tell you that time is very dangerous without a rigid routine. If you do the same thing every day at the same time for the same length of time, you’ll save yourself from many a sink. Routine is a condition of survival. Flannery O’Connor Letter to Betty Hester 10th February 62 —The Habit of Being: Letters of Flannery O'Connor This newsletter continues to exist thanks to the generosity of its readers. If you haven’t already, and if you’re able, please consider becoming a paying subscriber [ https://substack.com/redirect/a416b46b-4ad5-4330-aea8-d1bdb59956f6?j=eyJ1IjoiNzF4cDQwIn0.VLQsNiiAawz-DS2VtWTrcrG2IFeLIxnWNFcK9akSjpY ] or making a donation [ https://substack.com/redirect/57c1b485-465b-48f4-a7ca-c8f88aa0742b?j=eyJ1IjoiNzF4cDQwIn0.VLQsNiiAawz-DS2VtWTrcrG2IFeLIxnWNFcK9akSjpY ]. And if you can’t do any of that, please spread the word by sharing the newsletter with others. Thank you. Unsubscribe https://substack.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.uxrO7CIW6o_w5hlZn8OXOmnhimAON-jRyLnsvJfD0bo?

View this post on the web at https://news.lettersofnote.com/p/he-looks-like-a-blimp-d84 The following piece of correspondence was written on this day in 1992 and can be found in the book, Letters of Note: Dogs [ https://substack.com/redirect/31956072-79f6-4c38-a536-27fdb90f9a66?j=eyJ1IjoiNzF4cDQwIn0.VLQsNiiAawz-DS2VtWTrcrG2IFeLIxnWNFcK9akSjpY ]. Since 1800, when John Adams first moved into the newly-built White House with his admirably-named dogs, Juno and Satan, the majority of US Presidents have brought their canine friends to live at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. In fact, Donald Trump was the first US President in over a century, since poochless William McKinley took the reins in 1897, to not own a dog. In 1989, when Ronald Reagan’s Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, Rex, left the presidential kennel, his place was immediately filled by Millie, the English Springer Spaniel belonging to George H W Bush, and within months she gave birth to a litter of puppies, one of whom, Ranger, became Bush’s favourite. In 1992, panicked by Ranger’s ballooning weight, President sent this urgent missive to all White House personnel. February 6, 1992 IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT THIS IS AN ALL-POINTS BULLETIN FROM THE PRESIDENT SUBJECT: MY DOG “RANGER” Recently Ranger was put on a weight-reduction program. Either that program succeeds or we enter Ranger in the Houston Fat Stock Show as Prime Hereford. All offices should take a formal “pledge” that reads as follows: “WE AGREE NOT TO FEED RANGER. WE WILL NOT GIVE HIM BISCUITS. WE WILL NOT GIVE HIM FOOD OF ANY KIND.” In addition, Ranger’s ‘access’ is hereby restricted. He has been told not to wander the corridors without an escort. This applies to the East and West Wings, to the Residence from the 3rd floor to the very, very bottom basement. Although Ranger will still be permitted to roam at Camp David, the Camp David staff including the Marines, Naval personnel, All Civilians and Kids are specifically instructed to “rat” on anyone seen feeding Ranger. Ranger has been asked to wear a ‘Do not feed me’ badge in addition to his ID. I will, of course, report on Ranger’s fight against obesity. Right now, he looks like a blimp, a nice friendly appealing blimp, but a blimp. We Need Your Help—All hands, please help. FROM THE PRESIDENT Unsubscribe https://substack.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.0Zz1yV9Ed3E_eJxEfKP74dDlERpUieuQpgoGUUhPepk?

View this post on the web at https://news.lettersofnote.com/p/i-am-surprised-at-the-conduct-of 1889 was a turning-point year for Arthur Conan Doyle. Two years earlier he had published A Study in Scarlet, the first Sherlock Holmes novel, and another would follow in 1890. His medical practice was faltering, his literary prospects were gathering pace, and in January his life shifted again with the birth of his first child, Mary Louise, to his wife, Louise (or ‘Toodles’ to her family). The following letter was his way of breaking the news to his mother Jan 28 1889 Southsea Toodles produced this morning at 6.15 a remarkably fine specimen of the Toodles minor, who is now howling her head off in the back bedroom. I must say that I am surprised at the conduct of the young woman, seeing that both her parents are modest sort of people. She came evidently for a long visit, and yet she has made no apology for the suddenness of her arrival. She had no luggage with her, nor any possessions of any kind, barring a slight cough, and a voice like a coalman. I regret to say that she had not even any clothes, and we have had for decency’s sake to rig her out with a wardrobe. Now, one would not mind doing all this for the sake of a visitor, but when the said visitor does nothing but snuffle in reply it becomes monotonous. She has frank and engaging manners, but she is bald, which will prevent her from going out into society for some little time. Forgive me for not telling you, dear. I knew how trying the suspense of waiting would be, and thought that on the whole it would be best that you should learn when it was too late to worry yourself. P. S. Tell Lottie her flannel square came in very useful for the young Empress—her first bit of property. Unsubscribe https://substack.com/redirect/2/eyJlIjoiaHR0cHM6Ly9uZXdzLmxldHRlcnNvZm5vdGUuY29tL2FjdGlvbi9kaXNhYmxlX2VtYWlsP3Rva2VuPWV5SjFjMlZ5WDJsa0lqbzBNalkxTVRVd05EQXNJbkJ2YzNSZmFXUWlPakU0TmpBMk5qVTVNaXdpYVdGMElqb3hOelk1TmpJd01qSTJMQ0psZUhBaU9qRTRNREV4TlRZeU1qWXNJbWx6Y3lJNkluQjFZaTAxTnpVM055SXNJbk4xWWlJNkltUnBjMkZpYkdWZlpXMWhhV3dpZlEuSm9VOVh5UXBCTGV3UGFMck96SUFxY2w3NVhNMDEtWWY4NFl4TFk1OEo0RSIsInAiOjE4NjA2NjU5MiwicyI6NTc1NzcsImYiOnRydWUsInUiOjQyNjUxNTA0MCwiaWF0IjoxNzY5NjIwMjI2LCJleHAiOjIwODUxOTYyMjYsImlzcyI6InB1Yi0wIiwic3ViIjoibGluay1yZWRpcmVjdCJ9.Ig1UfCwik268Q4RzLNcmKRzEaT65sYutLaXauaEzkcQ?

View this post on the web at https://news.lettersofnote.com/p/what-we-have-got-to-have-in-this The Founding Fathers cannot have intended a President and his small group of appointed advisors to perform like a monarch surrounded by his court. As if the people’s representatives and the people themselves were a general nuisance, and the job is to keep the whole tiresome bunch quiet. . . What a black historical irony if the Free World was lost due to the tyranny of the Leader of the Free World. No sane man would believe for a minute that you win the minds and hearts of the people by bombing them. Or by financing and arming rulers whom the people detest. . . Our country is founded on as decent principles as exist in human society, but of course principles become contemptible hypocrisy when they are only used for rhetoric, not as a faithful guide to action. If this unforgivable war has taught us to be eternally vigilant against the misuse of our power, then it will have served one valuable purpose: the education of Americans. Martha Gellhorn Letter to Daniel Ellsberg 1971 —Selected Letters of Martha Gellhorn There is very little question in my mind that eventually—maybe this century, maybe next—the world will become politically unified. There is no other sensible conclusion. It may be the unity of disaster, when we all go up in a jolly burst of fissionable fuss, or, if we can hang tight awhile, it may be a more comfortable unity, when we knock some sense into each other’s heads, quit calling each other “foreigners,” and get down to business. E. B. White Letter to Janice White 27th April 1952 —Letters of E. B. White The day is coming, and it is not far distant, when ordinary intelligent people are going to look upon the world as it revealed itself in the middle of the 20th century, and to ask what possibly could have driven civilized people into the hysteria and near-insanity which characterizes us now. It will be then impossible to explain how people who call themselves Christians or Jews or Mohammedans or followers of the great Buddha, could have persuaded themselves that civilization was going to be preserved and increased and broadened by world war. And yet today an extraordinary number of human beings are depending upon force, and force to the utmost, in order to accomplish what they seem to think will be a new and better world. In that coming day we shall all know that such an idea was crazy; that neither armies nor navies, atom bombs or unlimited funds are going to remake the human soul; that what we have got to have in this world is a change of heart. We have got to respect our fellow beings no matter what their color or race is, or their history or their present situation. We have got to see that the poverty of the mass of men disappears, that ignorance is eliminated and that disease yields to scientific knowledge. Then, starting upon that foundation, we have got to do justice to human beings without regard to the lines of separation that appear, and we have got, so far as is humanly possible, to give thought and desire the widest freedom compatible with the freedom and progress of all. W. E. B. Du Bois Letter to The Tribune 13th July 1953 —The Correspondence of W. E. B. Du Bois: Selections, 1944-1963 I think it is more difficult these days to define what makes a good citizen than it has ever been before. Certainly all any of us can do is follow our own conscience and retain faith in our democracy. Sometimes it is the very people who cry out the loudest in favor of getting back to what they call “American Virtues” who lack this faith in our country. I believe that our greatest strength lies always in the protection of our smallest minorities. Charles Schulz Letter to a 10-year-old fan 9th November 1970 —Jean Schulz [ https://substack.com/redirect/c2a4c28d-4545-4314-8c2f-024396f60972?j=eyJ1IjoiNzF4cDQwIn0.VLQsNiiAawz-DS2VtWTrcrG2IFeLIxnWNFcK9akSjpY ] Unsubscribe https://substack.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.Ihd1ntf59FJoNgpUZK5c4r7f-BvrBdMn0qUuEDfHGZ8?

View this post on the web at https://news.lettersofnote.com/p/the-anguish-must-be-borne On this day in 1880, Mary Ann Evans died. Better known by her pen name, George Eliot, she was born in Nuneaton and is best known for writing Middlemarch, a novel often regarded as one of the greatest in the English language. In 1865, the young daughter of Caroline Bray, a close friend and fellow writer, died following a long illness. Some weeks later, Evans sent her this letter. My dear Cara, You see I have let the weeks go by—thinking of you, but not writing to you. I believe you are one of the few who can understand that in certain crises, direct expression of sympathy is the least possible to those who most feel sympathy. If I could have been with you in bodily presence, I should have sat silent, thinking silence a sign of feeling that speech, trying to be wise, must always spoil. The truest things one can say about great death are the oldest simplest things that everybody knows by rote, but that no one knows really till death has come very close. And when that inward teaching is going on, it seems pitiful presumption for those who are outside to be saying anything. There is no such thing as consolation, when we have made the lot of another our own as you did Nelly’s. The anguish must be borne—it will only get more and more bearable as other thoughts and feelings recover some power. I don’t know whether you strongly share, as I do, the old belief that made men say the gods loved those who died young. It seems to me truer than ever, now life has become more complex and more and more difficult problems have to be worked out. Life, though a good to men on the whole, is a doubtful good to many, and to some not a good at all. To my thought, it is a source of constant mental distortion to make the denial of this a part of religion, to go on pretending things are better than they are. But I will not write of judgments and opinions. What I want my letter to tell you is that I love you truly, gratefully, unchangeably. And to show me you believe it, you must not write till you feel inclined—not think I shall mind if you don’t answer this at all, for indeed there is nothing to answer. With love to you, always, dear Cara, your old Marian This newsletter continues to exist thanks to the generosity of its readers. If you haven’t already, and if you’re able, please consider becoming a paying subscriber [ https://substack.com/redirect/2c993274-ec1e-49c6-bc0a-a75ce13deff9?j=eyJ1IjoiNzF4cDQwIn0.VLQsNiiAawz-DS2VtWTrcrG2IFeLIxnWNFcK9akSjpY ] or making a donation [ https://substack.com/redirect/0dc7d60e-e227-48a6-bc5b-ff35ed565aeb?j=eyJ1IjoiNzF4cDQwIn0.VLQsNiiAawz-DS2VtWTrcrG2IFeLIxnWNFcK9akSjpY ] or buying a book [ https://substack.com/redirect/b66863e8-f86e-42b0-ae2c-fbb80ddf1591?j=eyJ1IjoiNzF4cDQwIn0.VLQsNiiAawz-DS2VtWTrcrG2IFeLIxnWNFcK9akSjpY ]. And if you can’t do any of that, please spread the word by sharing the newsletter with others. Thank you. Unsubscribe https://substack.com/redirect/2/eyJlIjoiaHR0cHM6Ly9uZXdzLmxldHRlcnNvZm5vdGUuY29tL2FjdGlvbi9kaXNhYmxlX2VtYWlsP3Rva2VuPWV5SjFjMlZ5WDJsa0lqbzBNalkxTVRVd05EQXNJbkJ2YzNSZmFXUWlPakU0TWpNMk5EUTVOU3dpYVdGMElqb3hOelkyTkRNNE5qWTRMQ0psZUhBaU9qRTNPVGM1TnpRMk5qZ3NJbWx6Y3lJNkluQjFZaTAxTnpVM055SXNJbk4xWWlJNkltUnBjMkZpYkdWZlpXMWhhV3dpZlEuWGpOVUl3ek90SmZkRV94NUxUV21hVkE5c0dLdldsM1dNUjV5X0VwTTdUZyIsInAiOjE4MjM2NDQ5NSwicyI6NTc1NzcsImYiOnRydWUsInUiOjQyNjUxNTA0MCwiaWF0IjoxNzY2NDM4NjY4LCJleHAiOjIwODIwMTQ2NjgsImlzcyI6InB1Yi0wIiwic3ViIjoibGluay1yZWRpcmVjdCJ9.pkIBwiJ2Z2gzGm0TRnF-abWpePpwdxCdTiSk6VOWjp0?

View this post on the web at https://news.lettersofnote.com/p/what-do-i-want-for-christmas If you’re looking for gifts (of note), tomorrow (19th Dec) is the final, safe day for people in the UK to order a book from my Letters of Note shop [ https://substack.com/redirect/ea771f52-5e6c-4ce7-9db5-f6374cfb4e04?j=eyJ1IjoiNzF4cDQwIn0.VLQsNiiAawz-DS2VtWTrcrG2IFeLIxnWNFcK9akSjpY ]—gift-wrapping is available—and have it safely delivered somewhere in time for Christmas. Sending it abroad will take longer. And should your loved ones already own the Letters of Note books, you are legally obliged to give them a copy of the book that almost killed me: Diaries of Note [ https://substack.com/redirect/6b45d616-7cb0-4665-a246-699964b5a7ec?j=eyJ1IjoiNzF4cDQwIn0.VLQsNiiAawz-DS2VtWTrcrG2IFeLIxnWNFcK9akSjpY ]. Not only is it magnificent, but it’s also the perfect book to begin reading on 1st January. Thanks x What do I want for Christmas? I want a war-escaper—a sort of ladder, I think, attached to a balloon—or a portable ivory tower or a new plush womb to escape back into. Or a lotion for invisibility. Dylan Thomas Letter to Vernon Watkins 13th December 1939 —Dylan Thomas: The Collected Letters Oh an English Christmas! We are not Christians; we are not social; we have no part in the fabric of the world, but all the same, Christmas flattens us out like a steam roller; turkey, pudding, tips, waits, holly, good wishes, presents, sweets... Virginia Woolf Letter to Jacques Raverat 26th December 1924 —The Letters of Virginia Woolf: Volume III: 1923-1928 We aren’t sending out any Christmas presents... I’m sick of Jesus, and don’t see at all why he should go on being born every year. We might have somebody else born, for a change. D.H. Lawrence Letter to Else Jaffe 12th December 1927 —Collected Works of D.H. Lawrence What an awful time of year this is! Just as one is feeling that if one can just hold on, it won’t get any worse, then all this Christmas idiocy bursts upon one like a slavering Niagara of nonsense & completely wrecks one’s entire frame. This means, in terms of my life, making a point of buying about six simple inexpensive presents when there are rather more people about than usual, and going home. No doubt in terms of yours it means seeing your house given over to hoards of mannerless middle-class brats and your good food & drink vanishing into the quacking tooth-equipped jaws of their alleged parents. Yours is the harder course, I can see. On the other hand, mine is happening to me. Philip Larkin Letter to Judy Egerton 17th December 1958 —Selected Letters of Philip Larkin, 1940-1985 Andrew says he insists on having the Tree either before Birdie comes or after she’s gone as she embarrasses him so much with the clergymen as she always asks them (a) why they became clergymen (b) if they wish they had been made a bishop and (c) if they enjoy sleeping with their wives. I must say I do see. Deborah Mitford Letter to Diana Mitford 1st December 1946 —The Mitfords: Letters Between Six Sisters Our pudding was made in a baby’s bath, stirred by everybody & Mr Gurdjieff put in a coin. Who gets the coin gets our darling new born calf for a present. The calf—1 day old—was led into the salon to the beating of tambourines & to a special melody composed for it. It took it very quietly. But two minute baby pigs which were also brought in & allowed to play squealed & shrieked terribly. Katherine Mansfield Letter to Ida Constance Baker 24th December 1922 —A Portrait of Katherine Mansfield It would be a happy thing if the miles were fewer and we could have even a little time together this Christmas Day—the first since we met. But it doesn’t matter really, for you seem very close. Rachel Carson Letter to Dorothy Freeman December 1953 —Always, Rachel: The Letters of Rachel Carson and Dorothy Freeman The little niches are hung so full of gay objects, the fabrics are so lavish... then in the evening when a single lantern across from it all burns and moves, excited as it were by the presence of everything its light engages, then Arabian Nights pass over into all that ever was anticipation, wish, and suspense within one, and Christmas is not so unthinkable at all. Rainer Maria Rilke, from Morocco Letter to Clara Rilke 17th December 1910 —Letters Of Rainer Maria Rilke, Vol II: 1910 1926 I came home to a Christmas of death, doom, desolation, sadness, disease, and despair: my family is showing its customary and magnificent Russian genius for futility and tragedy. Thomas Wolfe Letter to Aline Bernstein December 1925 —My Other Loneliness: Letters of Thomas Wolfe and Aline Bernstein Unsubscribe https://substack.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.TX_b1_x1tSwcLGRxN5VuT5HTFetajrj_V5TcAe3QJ8U?

[https://eotrx.substackcdn.com/open?token=eyJtIjoiPDIwMjUxMjE4MDM1OTUxLjMuZWI5NjVlY2YwZWQyY2EwZi5hMjJlZjZmMUBtZzIuc3Vic3RhY2suY29tPiIsInUiOjQyNjUxNTA0MCwiciI6ImJAZW1haWwuZ29tb2R1bHIuY29tIiwiZCI6Im1nMi5zdWJzdGFjay5jb20iLCJwIjpudWxsLCJ0IjpudWxsLCJhIjpudWxsLCJzIjo1NzU3NywiYyI6InVuZmluaXNoZWQtc3Vic2NyaXB0aW9uIiwiZiI6dHJ1ZSwicG9zaXRpb24iOiJ0b3AiLCJpYXQiOjE3NjYwMzAzOTEsImV4cCI6MTc2ODYyMjM5MSwiaXNzIjoicHViLTAiLCJzdWIiOiJlbyJ9.KXGBdoSADAnkJpE1oxsUcgwm-S7QoI4GQ4J7W3Pq98o] Thanks for signing up for the free version of the Letters of Note newsletter. ͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­ You subscribed to Letters of Note by Shaun Usher [https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx0kDuO5CAQQE9jsrWgMBgHBJv0NSw-hRutAYvPjvr2I_ckM8HEpXrvVTnT8Sj1pUcOMcf2RP-nDdtcjVePJROvF8-UUAQ1W6WknPKNEUwmnvuBGavp6HfTv02FYuSpQVqulBCSso1JtwWnWABYleeBmpWSqIGCYMAU5WITbOYz2k0KdIGiB2domA0ABhnYtNB0wHyXdeP-za4kEtseKr5LdK8DyamfvV9t4n8neEzwyPjR5hN7x9pKyKXjvTfBg1zD7q6kNHLsrx2zsSf6L8g17BmduW_fo9diFetKqrbTQt-q-Sip-HHWd0Mb1pdkYtY_PKT_-s_RsN7gBaRggi6U_NfwGQAA__9v3YGe] because it was recommended by Austin Kleon [https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx0kLuu5CAMhp8mdBuBE3IpKLaZ14gMmAyaBCIwK83brzKnmea0vnz-_Dtk2nN5m5ZCTLE-yf-pzVZX4sUxJ-HN6NWiF0FGzdMkBzmsStCJ8dh2SlSQyW_IX129KPE0y73mg1LzStbiihqmFRwpwEGNsxbRgAStQC1y0KtW_dCTXSdNLkjy4FCGHgEoTEF1ozx36G8zRvfqXT5FrFso9DExXBqJwzyZr9oNfzt4dPD4nr4ro8RWOabXQTmJq9nN5fNsKfJ7o4T2IP8Dupo9osP7_y16o2c9z6IY243yc67f85l9O8rHozbr84kxmYOYqdQcUmYS_GumrVK5wSNMWmk5SvHPwP8AAAD__9uQg0M] Unsubscribe from Letters of Note [https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx0Uk9zmz4Q_TRwCyOtEIYDh_zinzt4AmkbN7ZzYYS0GJk_8iARx_70HZjptD30uPt237z3dqVweDLjLZ2GWg_aNqge7FRZOeqL02bwVRoqGvPYx5SuoogwwhLqYy90V55wwFE4VKVwf6A8pn6TKh7LJAkrIDGVTCScxDGhIBIW15UC7usUCHAKNCaMJ5wGLMAqiTjKmqACKUgdCACso5p6IelPEMzKnJBtIE3va1vWIy5KUjdO6Hdp49zFeuzRg40HmwGvNujQORytqQfjcN7zYCPkbM2DjdJWVB2WC8nv2mMbZ1ocPLbG25ZKeLsdoGuzsyH5-Ujz3Y9rsX602fDfh2Tfa7H_pl96TqsvV5v1XaOesijfSSjOj_d8nfP89arfD801O5vP4t6yYneE_N5-Pj9tL5Ll-kVvr2qfuWInaXGX-vlpe1f7bO634lA0x_6zO8CbO-47mw0koNVLgqjXYY7i9lCIBNTt0pwtDy-vsGvejWjF_y3_6lzrQSS6rrS4OLYeWy9JXaaqlKbvp0G7W4nDbFqlv6BOSzGPl1qlfMVXK39MKy8kS0rByfRGTd243MBOlTK90EP6V86---c_TRbHmTiEiFNOQuJ_pPAzAAD__1VQ2sM] [https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!OPJC!,w_200,h_200,c_fill,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fbucketeer-e05bbc84-baa3-437e-9518-adb32be77984.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F7d7021b6-ce16-4dd1-ace0-48921daa1f70_200x200.jpeg] Letters of Note [https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!1UAz!,w_80,h_80,c_fill,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep,g_auto/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F6f08c121-b0ba-454e-bae3-61c44be6926d_306x306.png] Thanks for signing up for the free version of the Letters of Note newsletter. You’ll receive it once per week—usually on Fridays. If you’d like to receive a couple more of these emails each week, you can become a paid subscriber [https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx0kLuO5CAQRb_GZGtBGTAOCDbp37B4FG60Biweu-q_X7lngplg4lLde-5xpuNR6kuPHGKO7Yn-Vxu2uRqvHksmXnPPlFAENVulpAtdNkYwmXjuB2aspqPfTf9yFYqRp6YrSK-kArt5avmi5LJS5gM4JaWznEQNFAQDpugiNsHmZUa7SYEuUPTgDA2zAcAgA5s4TQfMN1k37s_sSiKx7aHim0T3OpCc-tn71abl9wSPCR4Z_7X5xN6xthJy6Xj_TfD4HGiRXMPurqQ0cuyvHbOxJ_qPtGvYMzpzS9ij12IV60qqthOn7875KKn4cdY3TBvWl2Ri1t8KSf9R7GhY72AOUjBBOSV_NfwPAAD__4nThY4] for a few pounds per month. Upgrade to paid [https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx0kLuOpDAQRb8GZ4vsgsIQONikfwP5UaatxTbyY1f99yt6JpgJJi7VveceqxsdubxUTz6kUJ_kftVuqi3haiEn5tTsxIorIyXksvCJT5tgFHU494MSFd3I7bp9ueIq2FNJocVCfiXpHZrF-9kCl4h2A1oBNxYUcEABYuUTbijGaSSzLUjWc3JgNfejBiC_eDHMPB4w3mRN2z-jzZGFuvtCbxLVSid2qmdr1zD9HuAxwCPRvzqe1BqVmn3Kje63AR6f-wyxq5vd5hh7Cu21U9LmJPcRdnVzBqtvB3twCiVKyYoyw8zfleORY3b9LG-W2o3LUYekvhWy9qPXXqncwTMsKJDPnP1V8D8AAP__s92Fug] This will also give you access to the full archive [https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx0kLtu9CAQhZ_GdL8Fg_GloPibfQ1rgMFGscHistG-feRNkxSRphudcz59FittKb90iz7EUHZy_0ozxeZw1ZAic3pwYlYzIy2mceSSy0UwOjEc60aRMlZyK9YfXzULtmuUcp4QZjEZ5_niHXCLgwQlp_s8Cxo4KAFi5lItSvSyJ7OMiqzn5MAi9z0CkB-96AZ-btDfZBXtR2_TyUJZfaY3ia65ETv0XutVOvm_g0cHj0ifpT-oVsol-Zgq3bkOHpjtHp7ErmZWm86zxVBfK0U0B7nvrquZI1i8FazBaTWpaWJZm27g78V-S2dy7chvlNKMSyeGqH_Nsfqn1lYo38UDjEooPnD21PAVAAD__56rhNY] (there are hundreds of old newsletters in there); occasional audio recordings from the likes of Jude Law [https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx00EuO3CAQgOHTwM4WFMZtL1hEinwNi0fhJsPD4pHR3D7qziZZzLpUVZ9-qztepX6pkX3IoT3RTW2YZmu4eyiZOrU4vsmNouKPdWWCiZ1TTDrE88KMVXd0p-7_TOXG6VMxY9YdjOcOhNNgd2Mc3wxYLjTKfadBAQPJgW9MyF3yWcxo9lWi9QwdWM38rAHQr56ThaUL5pesa_sx25JoaKev-JaoXgfSqJ69342IHwQOAkfGzzZH7B1rKz6Xjq89AsdN4HjiFNpkdYzophTsx_RLXxdWIo5GxM9Peg9z2pLSyKF_nZi1iej-PrqHicHqV58zOCUf8vGgVRmysDdnvkoqbsT6drZhXEk6ZPWfhfZvm4-G9XV4gVVyyRZGfyv4EwAA__9zxY7e], Alan Cumming [https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx00E2u3CAMwPHTwC4ROCHJLFhUqnKNiA8zgxogAvNG7_ZVppt20bVl-6e_M4TPUr91zyHm2F7oh9ZtczVeFEvmXs9ebmrjqOW6LGIS00NyTCaexxMzVkPoD0N_TdUm-Us7I9VqwMO8yW3yYYFls4uy26rWefWKRw0ClAS5iUk9lBynEe1jUeiCQA_OiDAaAAxLkGwW6QnjLSPjfo2uJB7bESp-JJpqR37qF9HV2PSDwc5gz_hu44lEWFsJuRDeewz2i8Ee4hcOxrnoMVMbYh7oXYYUcydsbNobm36--dXt4UpKPUf6PjAbe6L_8-3q9ozO3JGO6LVa1bryqi2bxcc0Pksqvp_1g23d-pJMzPofEKf_hu8N6314hkVJJWbBvzT8DgAA__9jZpBH], Olivia Colman [https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx00MvOnSAQwPGngZ0GBlHPgkWTxtcwXAalFTBc-uW8fePppl10PZmZX_5WNzxyeauefEihnuiG2k21Jdwt5ESdmhxf5UpR8WWemWDixSlGHa79wIRFN3S7bn9N5crpqZxk3k4gYLGTXdzMuZacz2AkX4E7SYMCBpIDX5mQL8lHMaJ5zRKtZ-jAauZHDYB-9pxMLB4wPrKm7c_R5khD3X3Bj0S10pFe6mztrkR8I7AR2BJ-1fHC1rDU7FNu-OwR2G4C24lliPoH1vaugyv5HqrNCSsRWyXi-xe9u9ltjrGn0N47Jm0udH8e3d1cweqnzx6ckotcFlqUIRP7cMYjx-z6VT7O2o3LUYek_rHQ9t_mvWJ5Dk8wSy7ZxOgvBb8DAAD__29Djlg], Stephen Fry [https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx00ElurDAQgOHT2DuQR6AXXjzpiWsgDwVtxQPykBa3j-hskkXWpar69Fvd4MjlUj3tPvn6BDfUbqot_mw-J-yUcHSRCwZF52kinPAHxRC1D9sBCYpu4DbdfkzlQvFTGS4sWJjJ4qggCzdCuIlwI_hsFmEZ9ooRJimjC-HyIenIRzCPSYLdCThmNdlHzRjs006RIPFg4y1r2n6MNkfs67YXeEtUKx1wUM_Wzor4P8RWxNYErzoGaA1KzXvKDe49xNYTsdW34eVDGAwMtad0DTnB4PSF-FoR___CZzebzTH25Nu1QdImgPt-dHYTvNV3n807JWc5z7gogwR5c8Yjx-x6KG9n7cblqH1Svyy4_dm8Vyj3YcEmSSURBH8q9hUAAP__o9-ORQ], Toby Jones [https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx00Duu3SAQxvHVQGcLsPGjoIgUeRsWj49jFBssHjm6u4980iTFrUcz89Pf6opXyl-qRR9iKAdcV5opNoe7hhSpU6Pji1woFJ-niQ1sWDnFpcO5vxCRdYXbdf1nKhdOD8U94LCMmNZx1o6ZVc6QevZ-slZgpEEJJiQXfGGDXCXvhx5mnSSsZ3DCauZ7LQT85DkZ2fUS_SOr2v7qbbpoKLvP-EhUzQ30VEetdyHDDyI2IraId-lP1Ipcko-p4tkjYruJ2MqBziWUWDsdyxu5qwe6-0gRZNgKGX6-6d3MbtN1tRjq146ozQn399fdzBmsfhLtwSk5y3mmWRkyso-of6UruXbmD7U049KlQ1T_cWj9NnsryM_hUUySSzYy-luJPwEAAP__4TGQxw], and others; and my undying love. You can cancel at any time. And if you pick the most expensive option, I’ll send you a limited edition Letters of Note print (seen here [https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx00UuupSAQBuDVyEzDQzg6YNCTsw3Do1ByBQwUfePuO56edA_uuPJXfanfGYS91Fv3HGKO7QA_tm6bq_HCWDLxevZskQsBzV5KUUHFyggkE89thwzVIPjN4D9TuTBy6CBWIZU3nINRyq1gBSzWLZwuanZBkqg55ZJxtlAhV8kmMYFdlQQXKHjuDA3Tkw4qsGGmaefTI0PjviZXEoltCxU-Eo21Azn1gXi1Qfwa-Hvgb1vKV5tOQITaSsgF4QkO_H3V4rvDNvA31AwNxwNSzPu3ucerxoyjhxb3DH6099jQ5BPu0R3lm1zdbq6k1HPEe4Ns7An-7_2r2zM687xti17Ll3y9SNV2mOlHOe0lFd_P-uG3bn1JJmb9n5Dgj1X0BvVZPHMlmaQzJb81_xMAAP___pCZZw]) or a signed copy of the Letters of Note book (seen here [https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx00D2O5CAQBeDTmKwtKBv_BASb-BoWP4UbtQELipX69iv3TjATTPyqnj49qwmPXN6qJR9SqE90j9pMtSVcFHJiTo1OLHJhqMQ8TXzgwyoYRh3O_cCERRO6XdO3VC6CPdU6Azhv9QyjtIvUehm4tdOyCjsZsc4sKOAgBYiFD3KVoh96NOsk0XqODqzmvtcA6CcvupHHA_pbRtq-epsjC3X3BT8SRaUhO9WT6Krd8KeDrYPN5Pyq_YlEWGr2KRPejx1sV8muWaodbF_xI_vHfcCuZnabY2wp0HvHpM2J7n__1cwZrL5n2YNTcpbzzIoy3cg_iv7IMbt2lg-vNuNy1CGpHwJGv07dKpa7eIRJCslHzv4q-BcAAP__qnKMiQ]). The choice is yours. If you’ve never read this newsletter before, here are a few of the most popular posts I’ve sent out over the past few years (I’ve removed the paywall on these so you can take a look): -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I HATE EVERYBODY INCLUDING YOU [https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx00LtuhTAMgOGnIRsoMZjLkKELr4FyMRAVEpTLqXj7itOlHTpbtj_9RmXaQrxl8avzLu1k61R0MtFd2QXPrOysGHFkJMXQ97zl7SQYncody0aeospkF5V_TXEUbJcGcZq6EbCdrEYYNI29FtTjBLYlPjAngQMKECNvcULRtA3pqUcyKycLRvG1UQC09quoOn5u0DyyrMxnY8LJXFrWSG-JzLEQO-Se85Wq9qOCuYLZ01dqDsqZYgqrD5mevQrmq4LZ1bvKVNOL4q2DvWvnzVGs81t9h8KuohcTzrN4l--FvNIH2Z83V9GHM-qpszgrccBhYFHqquNvTLOFM9hyxLcyFW3DqZyXfyQs_1u8JIrP4Q56FMg7zl4SvgMAAP__-BaOmw] Shaun Usher [https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx0kL3upSAQR59GumtgBNSCYhtfwwwwKFkFw8cm_7ff3LvNbbaeyfmdHIeNjlx-TE8hplhP8q_abXUlPi3mxLyRXixqYWTErDWf-LQKRjfGaz8oUcFGfsf2dVWLYKdRNmjSHnhAuwJwQOlmlFYRoV6cZNEAByVALHxSqxLjNJJdtSIXOHlwyMOIABR0EIPk9wHj26yh-z26fLNY91DoY2Ja6cQuc7b21GH6NcA2wPb9PcD2lBziRQNsQvFFT-urntjTq9eTCnu63V2-755i-9kpob3I_-M-3V7R4TvHHr1Rs5pnVowdJP-sj0e-s-9X-WjVbn2-MSZzUWtUag4pN2Ltv4l7pfIGS9BKKC45-2PgbwAAAP__3nmIYA] · December 18, 2020 I hate everybody including you [https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!BOYE!,w_1300,h_650,c_fill,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep,g_auto/https%3A%2F%2Fbucketeer-e05bbc84-baa3-437e-9518-adb32be77984.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F6d9b324f-871e-45e8-93bd-1f0511defc1d_700x183.jpeg]https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx00LtuhTAMgOGnIRsoMZjLkKELr4FyMRAVEpTLqXj7itOlHTpbtj_9RmXaQrxl8avzLu1k61R0MtFd2QXPrOysGHFkJMXQ97zl7SQYncody0aeospkF5V_TXEUbJcGcZq6EbCdrEYYNI29FtTjBLYlPjAngQMKECNvcULRtA3pqUcyKycLRvG1UQC09quoOn5u0DyyrMxnY8LJXFrWSG-JzLEQO-Se85Wq9qOCuYLZ01dqDsqZYgqrD5mevQrmq4LZ1bvKVNOL4q2DvWvnzVGs81t9h8KuohcTzrN4l--FvNIH2Z83V9GHM-qpszgrccBhYFHqquNvTLOFM9hyxLcyFW3DqZyXfyQs_1u8JIrP4Q56FMg7zl4SvgMAAP__-BaOmw Admittedly it’s thin, but there is definitely a silver lining to the pandemic: for the best part of a year we have all been granted a bulletproof excuse to turn down pretty much any invitation, and I, for one, am grateful. Before long, however, we will need to restart the excuse generator and begin declining things awkwardly again. For that reason I wan… [https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx00LtuhTAMgOGnIRsoMZjLkKELr4FyMRAVEpTLqXj7itOlHTpbtj_9RmXaQrxl8avzLu1k61R0MtFd2QXPrOysGHFkJMXQ97zl7SQYncody0aeospkF5V_TXEUbJcGcZq6EbCdrEYYNI29FtTjBLYlPjAngQMKECNvcULRtA3pqUcyKycLRvG1UQC09quoOn5u0DyyrMxnY8LJXFrWSG-JzLEQO-Se85Wq9qOCuYLZ01dqDsqZYgqrD5mevQrmq4LZ1bvKVNOL4q2DvWvnzVGs81t9h8KuohcTzrN4l--FvNIH2Z83V9GHM-qpszgrccBhYFHqquNvTLOFM9hyxLcyFW3DqZyXfyQs_1u8JIrP4Q56FMg7zl4SvgMAAP__-BaOmw] Read full story [https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx00LtuhTAMgOGnIRsoMZjLkKELr4FyMRAVEpTLqXj7itOlHTpbtj_9RmXaQrxl8avzLu1k61R0MtFd2QXPrOysGHFkJMXQ97zl7SQYncody0aeospkF5V_TXEUbJcGcZq6EbCdrEYYNI29FtTjBLYlPjAngQMKECNvcULRtA3pqUcyKycLRvG1UQC09quoOn5u0DyyrMxnY8LJXFrWSG-JzLEQO-Se85Wq9qOCuYLZ01dqDsqZYgqrD5mevQrmq4LZ1bvKVNOL4q2DvWvnzVGs81t9h8KuohcTzrN4l--FvNIH2Z83V9GHM-qpszgrccBhYFHqquNvTLOFM9hyxLcyFW3DqZyXfyQs_1u8JIrP4Q56FMg7zl4SvgMAAP__-BaOmw] -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ONE OF THE BEST THINGS IS BEING ALONE [https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx00Dtu7SAQgOHVmA4LsPGjoLiNt2HxGGx0DVgwJDq7j3zSJEXq0cx8-q1GOHJ5qZZ8SKGe4GhtptoSbgw5EadGxxe5EFB8niY2sGHlBKIO135AgqIR3K7xx1QunJxqAb-YeR0m4GZ0o-V6dZ7xhQnLHfcrCUowIbngCxvkKnk_9GDWSYL1DJywmvleCwF-8rwbWTxE_8hQ2_-9zZGEuvsCb4nC0oBc6kS8azf868TWiS3BZ-0vQIRSs08Z4dnrxHZ3YssJaPYUT6AGKlI8QzoqDZUaCOmg-soJyN3MbnOMLQV87ZC0ucB9f7ubuYLVT6Q9OCVnOc-kKNON7G3qjxyza1d5Y2szLkcdkvoFIvhn-FahPIdHMUku2cjIhxJfAQAA__9zy5FU] Shaun Usher [https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx0kL3upSAQR59GumtgBNSCYhtfwwwwKFkFw8cm_7ff3LvNbbaeyfmdHIeNjlx-TE8hplhP8q_abXUlPi3mxLyRXixqYWTErDWf-LQKRjfGaz8oUcFGfsf2dVWLYKdRNmjSHnhAuwJwQOlmlFYRoV6cZNEAByVALHxSqxLjNJJdtSIXOHlwyMOIABR0EIPk9wHj26yh-z26fLNY91DoY2Ja6cQuc7b21GH6NcA2wPb9PcD2lBziRQNsQvFFT-urntjTq9eTCnu63V2-755i-9kpob3I_-M-3V7R4TvHHr1Rs5pnVowdJP-sj0e-s-9X-WjVbn2-MSZzUWtUag4pN2Ltv4l7pfIGS9BKKC45-2PgbwAAAP__3nmIYA] · January 2, 2024 One of the best things is being alone [https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!vfSO!,w_1300,h_650,c_fill,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep,g_auto/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9a6b0f42-4cf0-4004-b136-704dcf1d5e60_2100x1427.jpeg]https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx00Dtu7SAQgOHVmA4LsPGjoLiNt2HxGGx0DVgwJDq7j3zSJEXq0cx8-q1GOHJ5qZZ8SKGe4GhtptoSbgw5EadGxxe5EFB8niY2sGHlBKIO135AgqIR3K7xx1QunJxqAb-YeR0m4GZ0o-V6dZ7xhQnLHfcrCUowIbngCxvkKnk_9GDWSYL1DJywmvleCwF-8rwbWTxE_8hQ2_-9zZGEuvsCb4nC0oBc6kS8azf868TWiS3BZ-0vQIRSs08Z4dnrxHZ3YssJaPYUT6AGKlI8QzoqDZUaCOmg-soJyN3MbnOMLQV87ZC0ucB9f7ubuYLVT6Q9OCVnOc-kKNON7G3qjxyza1d5Y2szLkcdkvoFIvhn-FahPIdHMUku2cjIhxJfAQAA__9zy5FU Happy ‘World Introvert Day’ to all who celebrate (at home). The following snippets are especially for you. [https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx00Dtu7SAQgOHVmA4LsPGjoLiNt2HxGGx0DVgwJDq7j3zSJEXq0cx8-q1GOHJ5qZZ8SKGe4GhtptoSbgw5EadGxxe5EFB8niY2sGHlBKIO135AgqIR3K7xx1QunJxqAb-YeR0m4GZ0o-V6dZ7xhQnLHfcrCUowIbngCxvkKnk_9GDWSYL1DJywmvleCwF-8rwbWTxE_8hQ2_-9zZGEuvsCb4nC0oBc6kS8azf868TWiS3BZ-0vQIRSs08Z4dnrxHZ3YssJaPYUT6AGKlI8QzoqDZUaCOmg-soJyN3MbnOMLQV87ZC0ucB9f7ubuYLVT6Q9OCVnOc-kKNON7G3qjxyza1d5Y2szLkcdkvoFIvhn-FahPIdHMUku2cjIhxJfAQAA__9zy5FU] Read full story [https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx00Dtu7SAQgOHVmA4LsPGjoLiNt2HxGGx0DVgwJDq7j3zSJEXq0cx8-q1GOHJ5qZZ8SKGe4GhtptoSbgw5EadGxxe5EFB8niY2sGHlBKIO135AgqIR3K7xx1QunJxqAb-YeR0m4GZ0o-V6dZ7xhQnLHfcrCUowIbngCxvkKnk_9GDWSYL1DJywmvleCwF-8rwbWTxE_8hQ2_-9zZGEuvsCb4nC0oBc6kS8azf868TWiS3BZ-0vQIRSs08Z4dnrxHZ3YssJaPYUT6AGKlI8QzoqDZUaCOmg-soJyN3MbnOMLQV87ZC0ucB9f7ubuYLVT6Q9OCVnOc-kKNON7G3qjxyza1d5Y2szLkcdkvoFIvhn-FahPIdHMUku2cjIhxJfAQAA__9zy5FU] -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I'VE HAD MY EYE ON YOU [https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx00MtuhSAQxvGnkZ0GULwsWHTja5gBBiUVMFxO49s3nm7aRdeT-fLLX0PBPaZb1mBdcPlA0-aqsk7uKi4GYuRg2CxmgpJN40h72i-MoAd3bjsGTFDQbFB-XcXMyCG5RewHXCbNrBoW1JSBQjNPDA0DsMRJTrlgnM20F4tgXd-hWkaB2lI0XAO1HXCOdrSsGajfeffICujPTkdPXN5swrdEllSRnPIo5cpN_9HwteFrwK_cnVgKphxtiAWfv4avV8NX98L2ANP6u8Ub2xjaO1ZyVbXp6H0NrtwbBlAnmp_1q6rTaXiibM5IMYlpIkmqZqBvQ7dHH0090xuXqzLRgwvyD4CUf0PXjOkZHvgomKADJS_JvwMAAP__hLWMNA] Shaun Usher [https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx0kL3upSAQR59GumtgBNSCYhtfwwwwKFkFw8cm_7ff3LvNbbaeyfmdHIeNjlx-TE8hplhP8q_abXUlPi3mxLyRXixqYWTErDWf-LQKRjfGaz8oUcFGfsf2dVWLYKdRNmjSHnhAuwJwQOlmlFYRoV6cZNEAByVALHxSqxLjNJJdtSIXOHlwyMOIABR0EIPk9wHj26yh-z26fLNY91DoY2Ja6cQuc7b21GH6NcA2wPb9PcD2lBziRQNsQvFFT-urntjTq9eTCnu63V2-755i-9kpob3I_-M-3V7R4TvHHr1Rs5pnVowdJP-sj0e-s-9X-WjVbn2-MSZzUWtUag4pN2Ltv4l7pfIGS9BKKC45-2PgbwAAAP__3nmIYA] · September 8, 2023 I've had my eye on you [https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!q2jO!,w_1300,h_650,c_fill,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep,g_auto/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F5780a1d4-02c9-4bda-bfc5-29b7aa696fad_1024x721.jpeg]https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx00MtuhSAQxvGnkZ0GULwsWHTja5gBBiUVMFxO49s3nm7aRdeT-fLLX0PBPaZb1mBdcPlA0-aqsk7uKi4GYuRg2CxmgpJN40h72i-MoAd3bjsGTFDQbFB-XcXMyCG5RewHXCbNrBoW1JSBQjNPDA0DsMRJTrlgnM20F4tgXd-hWkaB2lI0XAO1HXCOdrSsGajfeffICujPTkdPXN5swrdEllSRnPIo5cpN_9HwteFrwK_cnVgKphxtiAWfv4avV8NX98L2ANP6u8Ub2xjaO1ZyVbXp6H0NrtwbBlAnmp_1q6rTaXiibM5IMYlpIkmqZqBvQ7dHH0090xuXqzLRgwvyD4CUf0PXjOkZHvgomKADJS_JvwMAAP__hLWMNA Unless you’re from Yorkshire, it's highly unlikely that you'll understand every word of the following letter. In fact, even if you are from Yorkshire some of it could prove tricky. But it matters not. I seriously recommend watching the footage of this proposal being read at Letters Live by Taron Egerton—embedded beneath the transcript—as his performance… [https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx00MtuhSAQxvGnkZ0GULwsWHTja5gBBiUVMFxO49s3nm7aRdeT-fLLX0PBPaZb1mBdcPlA0-aqsk7uKi4GYuRg2CxmgpJN40h72i-MoAd3bjsGTFDQbFB-XcXMyCG5RewHXCbNrBoW1JSBQjNPDA0DsMRJTrlgnM20F4tgXd-hWkaB2lI0XAO1HXCOdrSsGajfeffICujPTkdPXN5swrdEllSRnPIo5cpN_9HwteFrwK_cnVgKphxtiAWfv4avV8NX98L2ANP6u8Ub2xjaO1ZyVbXp6H0NrtwbBlAnmp_1q6rTaXiibM5IMYlpIkmqZqBvQ7dHH0090xuXqzLRgwvyD4CUf0PXjOkZHvgomKADJS_JvwMAAP__hLWMNA] Read full story [https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx00MtuhSAQxvGnkZ0GULwsWHTja5gBBiUVMFxO49s3nm7aRdeT-fLLX0PBPaZb1mBdcPlA0-aqsk7uKi4GYuRg2CxmgpJN40h72i-MoAd3bjsGTFDQbFB-XcXMyCG5RewHXCbNrBoW1JSBQjNPDA0DsMRJTrlgnM20F4tgXd-hWkaB2lI0XAO1HXCOdrSsGajfeffICujPTkdPXN5swrdEllSRnPIo5cpN_9HwteFrwK_cnVgKphxtiAWfv4avV8NX98L2ANP6u8Ub2xjaO1ZyVbXp6H0NrtwbBlAnmp_1q6rTaXiibM5IMYlpIkmqZqBvQ7dHH0090xuXqzLRgwvyD4CUf0PXjOkZHvgomKADJS_JvwMAAP__hLWMNA] -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- YOURS ROBOTICALLY [https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx0kMvOnyAQR59GdhoYBGXBohtfw3AZlFTBcOmX7-0b_920i64n8zsnx5mGRy7fuqcQU6wn-rF2W12JT4s5Ea9nz1axEtRskZJyyhUjeJt47QcmLKah30376ypWRk4tqZTLOitlFRhOPQO6KAxUcLdytS4kaqAgGLCVcqEEm_iEVkmBLlD04AwNkwHAIAMbZnofML1mzbifk8s3iXUPBT8mupWO5NJna08d-I8BtgG2hF91urA1LDWHlBu-fwNszwDbmb_GlscajzTmEMjT7e7yffcU2_eOydgL_Z_dp9srOvPm2KPXYhHLQoq2w0w_9OnId_b9Kh-t2q3Pt4lJ_4Mm7b-Je8XyDs8gBRN0puSXht8BAAD__8qbh_0] Shaun Usher [https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx0kL3upSAQR59GumtgBNSCYhtfwwwwKFkFw8cm_7ff3LvNbbaeyfmdHIeNjlx-TE8hplhP8q_abXUlPi3mxLyRXixqYWTErDWf-LQKRjfGaz8oUcFGfsf2dVWLYKdRNmjSHnhAuwJwQOlmlFYRoV6cZNEAByVALHxSqxLjNJJdtSIXOHlwyMOIABR0EIPk9wHj26yh-z26fLNY91DoY2Ja6cQuc7b21GH6NcA2wPb9PcD2lBziRQNsQvFFT-urntjTq9eTCnu63V2-755i-9kpob3I_-M-3V7R4TvHHr1Rs5pnVowdJP-sj0e-s-9X-WjVbn2-MSZzUWtUag4pN2Ltv4l7pfIGS9BKKC45-2PgbwAAAP__3nmIYA] · March 28, 2023 Yours Robotically [https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!oedS!,w_1300,h_650,c_fill,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep,g_auto/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F5ef5120a-145d-44ff-b415-e739f697955b_771x453.jpeg]https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx0kMvOnyAQR59GdhoYBGXBohtfw3AZlFTBcOmX7-0b_920i64n8zsnx5mGRy7fuqcQU6wn-rF2W12JT4s5Ea9nz1axEtRskZJyyhUjeJt47QcmLKah30376ypWRk4tqZTLOitlFRhOPQO6KAxUcLdytS4kaqAgGLCVcqEEm_iEVkmBLlD04AwNkwHAIAMbZnofML1mzbifk8s3iXUPBT8mupWO5NJna08d-I8BtgG2hF91urA1LDWHlBu-fwNszwDbmb_GlscajzTmEMjT7e7yffcU2_eOydgL_Z_dp9srOvPm2KPXYhHLQoq2w0w_9OnId_b9Kh-t2q3Pt4lJ_4Mm7b-Je8XyDs8gBRN0puSXht8BAAD__8qbh_0 I’ve been playing with ChatGPT, which, for the uninitiated, is an artificial intelligence-powered chatbot that’s been fed huge amounts of data from a variety of sources and is now open for questioning. That’s about as much complexity as my poor brain can handle, so thankfully the upshot is simple: you type a question about pretty much anythi… [https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx0kMvOnyAQR59GdhoYBGXBohtfw3AZlFTBcOmX7-0b_920i64n8zsnx5mGRy7fuqcQU6wn-rF2W12JT4s5Ea9nz1axEtRskZJyyhUjeJt47QcmLKah30376ypWRk4tqZTLOitlFRhOPQO6KAxUcLdytS4kaqAgGLCVcqEEm_iEVkmBLlD04AwNkwHAIAMbZnofML1mzbifk8s3iXUPBT8mupWO5NJna08d-I8BtgG2hF91urA1LDWHlBu-fwNszwDbmb_GlscajzTmEMjT7e7yffcU2_eOydgL_Z_dp9srOvPm2KPXYhHLQoq2w0w_9OnId_b9Kh-t2q3Pt4lJ_4Mm7b-Je8XyDs8gBRN0puSXht8BAAD__8qbh_0] Read full story [https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx0kMvOnyAQR59GdhoYBGXBohtfw3AZlFTBcOmX7-0b_920i64n8zsnx5mGRy7fuqcQU6wn-rF2W12JT4s5Ea9nz1axEtRskZJyyhUjeJt47QcmLKah30376ypWRk4tqZTLOitlFRhOPQO6KAxUcLdytS4kaqAgGLCVcqEEm_iEVkmBLlD04AwNkwHAIAMbZnofML1mzbifk8s3iXUPBT8mupWO5NJna08d-I8BtgG2hF91urA1LDWHlBu-fwNszwDbmb_GlscajzTmEMjT7e7yffcU2_eOydgL_Z_dp9srOvPm2KPXYhHLQoq2w0w_9OnId_b9Kh-t2q3Pt4lJ_4Mm7b-Je8XyDs8gBRN0puSXht8BAAD__8qbh_0] -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- LIVE A LIFE WORTH LIVING [https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx00L2upSAQwPGnkU4DgygWFNuc1zB8DEoWwfBxbu7bbzzb7Ba3nszML3-rGx65fKuefEihnujG2k21Jdwt5EScmh2TQhJUbF0WyinfGMFLh7gfmLDohm7X7Z-pkIycSoIGq0EujgOfF-R2ZYw6I7kF77eNBAUUBAMmKRebYBOf0GyLQOspOrCa-kkDoF88G2Z6HTA9sqbt78nmi4S6-4IfiWqlI4nqbO2uA_81wGuAV8KvOkVsDUvNPuWGz94Ar3uAVwxvHPUYg8fxK5d2jjG8QzpG9JLc3ew2X1dPoX3vmLSJ6P4-ubuJweqnzR6cEqtYV1KUGWb6oUxHvrLrsXyMtRuXLx2S-s9B2o-9e8XyHJ5hEUzQmZK3gj8BAAD__9H6jYI] Shaun Usher [https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx0kL3upSAQR59GumtgBNSCYhtfwwwwKFkFw8cm_7ff3LvNbbaeyfmdHIeNjlx-TE8hplhP8q_abXUlPi3mxLyRXixqYWTErDWf-LQKRjfGaz8oUcFGfsf2dVWLYKdRNmjSHnhAuwJwQOlmlFYRoV6cZNEAByVALHxSqxLjNJJdtSIXOHlwyMOIABR0EIPk9wHj26yh-z26fLNY91DoY2Ja6cQuc7b21GH6NcA2wPb9PcD2lBziRQNsQvFFT-urntjTq9eTCnu63V2-755i-9kpob3I_-M-3V7R4TvHHr1Rs5pnVowdJP-sj0e-s-9X-WjVbn2-MSZzUWtUag4pN2Ltv4l7pfIGS9BKKC45-2PgbwAAAP__3nmIYA] · March 19, 2024 Live a life worth living [https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!UeQd!,w_1300,h_650,c_fill,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep,g_auto/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1907161d-4ba5-4eae-85a6-4b80527498af_600x670.webp]https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx00L2upSAQwPGnkU4DgygWFNuc1zB8DEoWwfBxbu7bbzzb7Ba3nszML3-rGx65fKuefEihnujG2k21Jdwt5EScmh2TQhJUbF0WyinfGMFLh7gfmLDohm7X7Z-pkIycSoIGq0EujgOfF-R2ZYw6I7kF77eNBAUUBAMmKRebYBOf0GyLQOspOrCa-kkDoF88G2Z6HTA9sqbt78nmi4S6-4IfiWqlI4nqbO2uA_81wGuAV8KvOkVsDUvNPuWGz94Ar3uAVwxvHPUYg8fxK5d2jjG8QzpG9JLc3ew2X1dPoX3vmLSJ6P4-ubuJweqnzR6cEqtYV1KUGWb6oUxHvrLrsXyMtRuXLx2S-s9B2o-9e8XyHJ5hEUzQmZK3gj8BAAD__9H6jYI Today is the anniversary of the death of Julie Yip-Williams, so I’d like to reshare a long and profoundly moving letter she wrote to her daughters. It appears in the book, Letters of Note: Mothers, with the kind permission of her widower, John Williams, and on the audiobook the letter is read beautifully by Crystal Clarke. I’ve also included that audio … [https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx00L2upSAQwPGnkU4DgygWFNuc1zB8DEoWwfBxbu7bbzzb7Ba3nszML3-rGx65fKuefEihnujG2k21Jdwt5EScmh2TQhJUbF0WyinfGMFLh7gfmLDohm7X7Z-pkIycSoIGq0EujgOfF-R2ZYw6I7kF77eNBAUUBAMmKRebYBOf0GyLQOspOrCa-kkDoF88G2Z6HTA9sqbt78nmi4S6-4IfiWqlI4nqbO2uA_81wGuAV8KvOkVsDUvNPuWGz94Ar3uAVwxvHPUYg8fxK5d2jjG8QzpG9JLc3ew2X1dPoX3vmLSJ6P4-ubuJweqnzR6cEqtYV1KUGWb6oUxHvrLrsXyMtRuXLx2S-s9B2o-9e8XyHJ5hEUzQmZK3gj8BAAD__9H6jYI] Read full story [https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx00L2upSAQwPGnkU4DgygWFNuc1zB8DEoWwfBxbu7bbzzb7Ba3nszML3-rGx65fKuefEihnujG2k21Jdwt5EScmh2TQhJUbF0WyinfGMFLh7gfmLDohm7X7Z-pkIycSoIGq0EujgOfF-R2ZYw6I7kF77eNBAUUBAMmKRebYBOf0GyLQOspOrCa-kkDoF88G2Z6HTA9sqbt78nmi4S6-4IfiWqlI4nqbO2uA_81wGuAV8KvOkVsDUvNPuWGz94Ar3uAVwxvHPUYg8fxK5d2jjG8QzpG9JLc3ew2X1dPoX3vmLSJ6P4-ubuJweqnzR6cEqtYV1KUGWb6oUxHvrLrsXyMtRuXLx2S-s9B2o-9e8XyHJ5hEUzQmZK3gj8BAAD__9H6jYI] -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- WHEN YOU LOVE A MAN, DON’T SPOIL EVERYTHING BY MARRYING HIM [https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx00DnO2zAQBeDTiB0FLiJNFyzS-BoCl5FEhIvAxYZuH8hpkuIvB4OZ9-E502Ev9dIjbyGHdoDHbdjmajh7KBl5vXiqhEKg6UNKwgl_UgTJhLjukKGaDn41_Z-tUBQd90ydV4tUltvFK2U8N8oR6Q3xwCUKmhEmKKOKcPEUdOYz2KcU4DYCnjlDttkwBpvc6LSQtLP5lnXjfs-uJBTaulX4SnSvA1DUR-9nm_ivib0m9srwaXOE3qG2suXS4b6b2Ouc2OtzQMZXGTiWN2CDk8nYl9xxO0uIGN5Qr36EvKNz2NWVlEYO_VohGxvB_008h43BmbuoNXgtHuLxQFXbaSFf17yXVPyI9Qtuw_qSTMj6PxTqP5Y_GtT78cKkoIIsBL01-xMAAP__BGeTTw] Shaun Usher [https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx0kL3upSAQR59GumtgBNSCYhtfwwwwKFkFw8cm_7ff3LvNbbaeyfmdHIeNjlx-TE8hplhP8q_abXUlPi3mxLyRXixqYWTErDWf-LQKRjfGaz8oUcFGfsf2dVWLYKdRNmjSHnhAuwJwQOlmlFYRoV6cZNEAByVALHxSqxLjNJJdtSIXOHlwyMOIABR0EIPk9wHj26yh-z26fLNY91DoY2Ja6cQuc7b21GH6NcA2wPb9PcD2lBziRQNsQvFFT-urntjTq9eTCnu63V2-755i-9kpob3I_-M-3V7R4TvHHr1Rs5pnVowdJP-sj0e-s-9X-WjVbn2-MSZzUWtUag4pN2Ltv4l7pfIGS9BKKC45-2PgbwAAAP__3nmIYA] · June 13, 2024 When you love a man, don’t spoil everything by marrying him [https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!fn_e!,w_1300,h_650,c_fill,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep,g_auto/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Faf3d382a-d9ee-495f-b008-d1b80aa2a887_1024x695.jpeg]https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx00DnO2zAQBeDTiB0FLiJNFyzS-BoCl5FEhIvAxYZuH8hpkuIvB4OZ9-E502Ev9dIjbyGHdoDHbdjmajh7KBl5vXiqhEKg6UNKwgl_UgTJhLjukKGaDn41_Z-tUBQd90ydV4tUltvFK2U8N8oR6Q3xwCUKmhEmKKOKcPEUdOYz2KcU4DYCnjlDttkwBpvc6LSQtLP5lnXjfs-uJBTaulX4SnSvA1DUR-9nm_ivib0m9srwaXOE3qG2suXS4b6b2Ouc2OtzQMZXGTiWN2CDk8nYl9xxO0uIGN5Qr36EvKNz2NWVlEYO_VohGxvB_008h43BmbuoNXgtHuLxQFXbaSFf17yXVPyI9Qtuw_qSTMj6PxTqP5Y_GtT78cKkoIIsBL01-xMAAP__BGeTTw https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx00DnO2zAQBeDTiB0FLiJNFyzS-BoCl5FEhIvAxYZuH8hpkuIvB4OZ9-E502Ev9dIjbyGHdoDHbdjmajh7KBl5vXiqhEKg6UNKwgl_UgTJhLjukKGaDn41_Z-tUBQd90ydV4tUltvFK2U8N8oR6Q3xwCUKmhEmKKOKcPEUdOYz2KcU4DYCnjlDttkwBpvc6LSQtLP5lnXjfs-uJBTaulX4SnSvA1DUR-9nm_ivib0m9srwaXOE3qG2suXS4b6b2Ouc2OtzQMZXGTiWN2CDk8nYl9xxO0uIGN5Qr36EvKNz2NWVlEYO_VohGxvB_008h43BmbuoNXgtHuLxQFXbaSFf17yXVPyI9Qtuw_qSTMj6PxTqP5Y_GtT78cKkoIIsBL01-xMAAP__BGeTTw Read full story [https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx00DnO2zAQBeDTiB0FLiJNFyzS-BoCl5FEhIvAxYZuH8hpkuIvB4OZ9-E502Ev9dIjbyGHdoDHbdjmajh7KBl5vXiqhEKg6UNKwgl_UgTJhLjukKGaDn41_Z-tUBQd90ydV4tUltvFK2U8N8oR6Q3xwCUKmhEmKKOKcPEUdOYz2KcU4DYCnjlDttkwBpvc6LSQtLP5lnXjfs-uJBTaulX4SnSvA1DUR-9nm_ivib0m9srwaXOE3qG2suXS4b6b2Ouc2OtzQMZXGTiWN2CDk8nYl9xxO0uIGN5Qr36EvKNz2NWVlEYO_VohGxvB_008h43BmbuoNXgtHuLxQFXbaSFf17yXVPyI9Qtuw_qSTMj6PxTqP5Y_GtT78cKkoIIsBL01-xMAAP__BGeTTw] -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I AM UNABLE TO ACCEPT YOUR REJECTION AT THIS TIME [https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx00M2ynSAMB_CnkZ0ORFHPgkU3vobDR_DQCjgQ2jlv39Fuehd3nX-SX2I14ZHLR7XkQwr1ja6vzVRbwkUhJ-bU5MQqV4ZKLPPMRz6-BMOow7kfmLBoQrdr-q8qV8HeykrUfsKR63X0HMHyWYJcvZk4R-kNCwo4SAFi5aN8STGMA5rXLNF6jg6s5n7QAOhnL7qJxwOGW0ba_hpsjizU3Rd8JIpKQ3aqN9FVu_FHB1sHW8I_dTiRCEvNPmXCu6-D7epgC72OfUvanNhT7rW1eFH_ya30BX-ifY6_mtltjrGlQJ8dn7T7t-xq5gxW37E9OCUXuSysKNNN_CENR47ZtbM81tqMy1GHpL54GH3791ax3IMnmKWQfOLst4K_AQAA__8tvZFW] Shaun Usher [https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx0kL3upSAQR59GumtgBNSCYhtfwwwwKFkFw8cm_7ff3LvNbbaeyfmdHIeNjlx-TE8hplhP8q_abXUlPi3mxLyRXixqYWTErDWf-LQKRjfGaz8oUcFGfsf2dVWLYKdRNmjSHnhAuwJwQOlmlFYRoV6cZNEAByVALHxSqxLjNJJdtSIXOHlwyMOIABR0EIPk9wHj26yh-z26fLNY91DoY2Ja6cQuc7b21GH6NcA2wPb9PcD2lBziRQNsQvFFT-urntjTq9eTCnu63V2-755i-9kpob3I_-M-3V7R4TvHHr1Rs5pnVowdJP-sj0e-s-9X-WjVbn2-MSZzUWtUag4pN2Ltv4l7pfIGS9BKKC45-2PgbwAAAP__3nmIYA] · March 17, 2021 I am unable to accept your rejection at this time [https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!MyVZ!,w_1300,h_650,c_fill,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep,g_auto/https%3A%2F%2Fbucketeer-e05bbc84-baa3-437e-9518-adb32be77984.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fd26e9784-7adb-4922-bdf4-a13653ee8ad1_501x382.png]https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx00M2ynSAMB_CnkZ0ORFHPgkU3vobDR_DQCjgQ2jlv39Fuehd3nX-SX2I14ZHLR7XkQwr1ja6vzVRbwkUhJ-bU5MQqV4ZKLPPMRz6-BMOow7kfmLBoQrdr-q8qV8HeykrUfsKR63X0HMHyWYJcvZk4R-kNCwo4SAFi5aN8STGMA5rXLNF6jg6s5n7QAOhnL7qJxwOGW0ba_hpsjizU3Rd8JIpKQ3aqN9FVu_FHB1sHW8I_dTiRCEvNPmXCu6-D7epgC72OfUvanNhT7rW1eFH_ya30BX-ifY6_mtltjrGlQJ8dn7T7t-xq5gxW37E9OCUXuSysKNNN_CENR47ZtbM81tqMy1GHpL54GH3791ax3IMnmKWQfOLst4K_AQAA__8tvZFW In 1981, when Paul Devlin was in high school applying for a university place, he received a rejection letter from Harvard which, to his great satisfaction, contained a grammatical error. Never one to miss an opportunity, Paul quickly decided that he must reject Harvard’s rejection l… [https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx00M2ynSAMB_CnkZ0ORFHPgkU3vobDR_DQCjgQ2jlv39Fuehd3nX-SX2I14ZHLR7XkQwr1ja6vzVRbwkUhJ-bU5MQqV4ZKLPPMRz6-BMOow7kfmLBoQrdr-q8qV8HeykrUfsKR63X0HMHyWYJcvZk4R-kNCwo4SAFi5aN8STGMA5rXLNF6jg6s5n7QAOhnL7qJxwOGW0ba_hpsjizU3Rd8JIpKQ3aqN9FVu_FHB1sHW8I_dTiRCEvNPmXCu6-D7epgC72OfUvanNhT7rW1eFH_ya30BX-ifY6_mtltjrGlQJ8dn7T7t-xq5gxW37E9OCUXuSysKNNN_CENR47ZtbM81tqMy1GHpL54GH3791ax3IMnmKWQfOLst4K_AQAA__8tvZFW] Read full story [https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx00M2ynSAMB_CnkZ0ORFHPgkU3vobDR_DQCjgQ2jlv39Fuehd3nX-SX2I14ZHLR7XkQwr1ja6vzVRbwkUhJ-bU5MQqV4ZKLPPMRz6-BMOow7kfmLBoQrdr-q8qV8HeykrUfsKR63X0HMHyWYJcvZk4R-kNCwo4SAFi5aN8STGMA5rXLNF6jg6s5n7QAOhnL7qJxwOGW0ba_hpsjizU3Rd8JIpKQ3aqN9FVu_FHB1sHW8I_dTiRCEvNPmXCu6-D7epgC72OfUvanNhT7rW1eFH_ya30BX-ifY6_mtltjrGlQJ8dn7T7t-xq5gxW37E9OCUXuSysKNNN_CENR47ZtbM81tqMy1GHpL54GH3791ax3IMnmKWQfOLst4K_AQAA__8tvZFW] -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- MOST PEOPLE DON’T KNOW AT ALL HOW BEAUTIFUL THE WORLD IS [https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx00DuupTAMgOHVkA6UGAKcIsU0bAPlYSC6eaDEmaO7-xFnmpni1pbtT7_VhGcu36qlwydfL3R9baba4m_yOTGnJidWuTJUYplnPvLxJRhG7cN-YsKiCd2u6Z-pXAW7lMZ50QtKievkOIBbXyhWcGKRxhmHzCvgIAWIlY_yJcUwDmhes0R7cHRgNT8GDYDHfIhu4vGE4ZGRtl-DzZH5uh8FPxJFpSEL6iK6azf-6mDrYEv4rkNAIiw1HykTPnsdbHcHW8yV-hvzHbB3OVH_lfK719TrEPorv9ndzG5zjC15-t4xaRPQ_X10NxO81U-f3TslF7ksrCjTTfzDGc4cs2uhfJy1GZej9kn9Z2H0Y_NWsTyHJ5ilkHzi7LeCPwEAAP__CfeP8Q] Shaun Usher [https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx0kL3upSAQR59GumtgBNSCYhtfwwwwKFkFw8cm_7ff3LvNbbaeyfmdHIeNjlx-TE8hplhP8q_abXUlPi3mxLyRXixqYWTErDWf-LQKRjfGaz8oUcFGfsf2dVWLYKdRNmjSHnhAuwJwQOlmlFYRoV6cZNEAByVALHxSqxLjNJJdtSIXOHlwyMOIABR0EIPk9wHj26yh-z26fLNY91DoY2Ja6cQuc7b21GH6NcA2wPb9PcD2lBziRQNsQvFFT-urntjTq9eTCnu63V2-755i-9kpob3I_-M-3V7R4TvHHr1Rs5pnVowdJP-sj0e-s-9X-WjVbn2-MSZzUWtUag4pN2Ltv4l7pfIGS9BKKC45-2PgbwAAAP__3nmIYA] · November 12, 2023 Most people don’t know at all how beautiful the world is [https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!UpwG!,w_1300,h_650,c_fill,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep,g_auto/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F2e863025-13e5-45a6-9412-b8708afbf2d5_2121x1414.jpeg]https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx00DuupTAMgOHVkA6UGAKcIsU0bAPlYSC6eaDEmaO7-xFnmpni1pbtT7_VhGcu36qlwydfL3R9baba4m_yOTGnJidWuTJUYplnPvLxJRhG7cN-YsKiCd2u6Z-pXAW7lMZ50QtKievkOIBbXyhWcGKRxhmHzCvgIAWIlY_yJcUwDmhes0R7cHRgNT8GDYDHfIhu4vGE4ZGRtl-DzZH5uh8FPxJFpSEL6iK6azf-6mDrYEv4rkNAIiw1HykTPnsdbHcHW8yV-hvzHbB3OVH_lfK719TrEPorv9ndzG5zjC15-t4xaRPQ_X10NxO81U-f3TslF7ksrCjTTfzDGc4cs2uhfJy1GZej9kn9Z2H0Y_NWsTyHJ5ilkHzi7LeCPwEAAP__CfeP8Q On this day in 1901, Austrian poet Rainer Maria Rilke sent the following letterand poemto Helmuth Westhoff, a German painter brother of Clara Westhoff, a who had recently married Rilke. [https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx00DuupTAMgOHVkA6UGAKcIsU0bAPlYSC6eaDEmaO7-xFnmpni1pbtT7_VhGcu36qlwydfL3R9baba4m_yOTGnJidWuTJUYplnPvLxJRhG7cN-YsKiCd2u6Z-pXAW7lMZ50QtKievkOIBbXyhWcGKRxhmHzCvgIAWIlY_yJcUwDmhes0R7cHRgNT8GDYDHfIhu4vGE4ZGRtl-DzZH5uh8FPxJFpSEL6iK6azf-6mDrYEv4rkNAIiw1HykTPnsdbHcHW8yV-hvzHbB3OVH_lfK719TrEPorv9ndzG5zjC15-t4xaRPQ_X10NxO81U-f3TslF7ksrCjTTfzDGc4cs2uhfJy1GZej9kn9Z2H0Y_NWsTyHJ5ilkHzi7LeCPwEAAP__CfeP8Q] Read full story [https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx00DuupTAMgOHVkA6UGAKcIsU0bAPlYSC6eaDEmaO7-xFnmpni1pbtT7_VhGcu36qlwydfL3R9baba4m_yOTGnJidWuTJUYplnPvLxJRhG7cN-YsKiCd2u6Z-pXAW7lMZ50QtKievkOIBbXyhWcGKRxhmHzCvgIAWIlY_yJcUwDmhes0R7cHRgNT8GDYDHfIhu4vGE4ZGRtl-DzZH5uh8FPxJFpSEL6iK6azf-6mDrYEv4rkNAIiw1HykTPnsdbHcHW8yV-hvzHbB3OVH_lfK719TrEPorv9ndzG5zjC15-t4xaRPQ_X10NxO81U-f3TslF7ksrCjTTfzDGc4cs2uhfJy1GZej9kn9Z2H0Y_NWsTyHJ5ilkHzi7LeCPwEAAP__CfeP8Q] -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Thanks again, Shaun Private podcast setup: To set up your podcast app, click this link [https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx0ks2OmzAQgJ8GbkW2iSEcOESJ0iUNrDZN87MXBPaQmBgbYbNAnr4ivbSHSiONNKMZffpmWGHhprsp7lUllDB34N9MXxrWidYKrVweLzhe0qULMQ6DAPnIj7ALTSFkfgMFXWGB54X9q0uX2L3H4PsojDBwzkJEAxqFCAI-RxVRFiJXxAQRigleIp9GFHu-B2UUUGAVAk5YgSqvIASqoMLOAjU34s1ktmAPj-nGFSavOniRxLbrwZXx3drWOP7KIVuHbBUMxpNgLXRGV0pbmOccspXCWFCOv7X6MecNTDvMyGm6EPlIao3S-orT468h26xM0sg7XydBemQkq1fPdJPS9OcgPi_3Ian1mD2vJKtTnB4f4369a5mfinexG_g5sdmR4ezJxH69e_Jz8qqX5FBfLxnaXzLJ305DopB3bhM6ltyHdzadDgc5_Hhjwzhd0tUJPj7zr6b_gM3q-3gYB7fty5zppumVsFMOqigl8D8C2r6UghXz3XLBYxrSMHS7uHQW6KXJu-lG8152L3-mL7luCqHifxy59r-_0Bvo5sULElBM0QK5XzH5HQAA___VicON] on your phone. © 2025 Letters of Note Letters of Note, PO Box 338, MANCHESTER, M21 3EF Unsubscribe [https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx0kk1zmzAQhn8N3MJIQsL2gUMa1x08gbSNG9u5MPpYjAxIDBIh-Nd3cC_todfd2Xfe55mV3MPFDnM6mkob7WpQD24UTg6699qaUKVU4TVbh5DiVZKgGMUbHELHdVtewMDAPaiS-7-2bI3DOhWCEsIlQ9WKYqpWigoaU2AJRVxtQIY6JYgwTPAaxWzDcBRHIDYJA1khUERyVEWcEKiSCgcUdRcSLc08l00kbRdqV1YD3JukfhghbNPa-94F8WNAdgHZGZhc1IL3MDhbGethuQvIjssFLSA7pR0XLZT3kCDeeduACeItzHssydt8Im2TXS3Kr2ecH35NxfbRZebLh4x_Vvz4Q790DItvk8u6tlZPWZIfJCmuj7d8m7P8ddLvp3rKrvazuDVxcTiT_NZ8Pj_texnn-kXvJ3XMfHGQuLhJ_fy0v6ljtswbfirqc_fZnsibPx9blxkUYfGyAdBbmgOfHwq-IWru66tjtH8lh_rd8oZ_bdh375uwH0UpbdeNRvu5BLNAqj-S-lG0WvJFQKlVylZstQqHVAQU3S1EF9tZNbbD3bEbhbId1yb9x2Po__svo4NhCaYkYZghisKPlPwOAAD__zze0Bc] Get the app [https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!IzGP!,w_262,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack.com%2Fimg%2Femail%2Fgeneric-app-button%402x.png]https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx0kb2O5CAQhJ8GMlvQGHs2IDhpNa9h8dN40BqwoDlp3_403mSTSzqpUvXXXd4SHrV9m1FiKqm_MEx9uO5buijVwoNZgnzoB0cjt3UVSqgPyTHbdO4HFmyWMOyWfqn6IfnLgJMRF_Tar9umVu_Vam0ADbDYBTbFkwEBWoJ8CKU_tJzVjO5j1eijwADeijhbAIxrlGwR-YD5TUbWf82-Zp76HhveJIbaQH6aF9HVmfrD4Mng-dvN4Gmv62dOnWrDqWFIDT0x9RyUd2_zZdNRmPp8e7JtX0ipHAzWW66FsBBTn_fGKdZK2CY3iGrh13C7rzmPkuh7x2LdieGH6hruTN6-n7mnYPSmt40349gi7qT5qLmGcbb7qD5cqNmmYk4kwtZrLJWQ038LGh3bO3iBVUstFsH_GvgXAAD__wnGn-4Start writing [https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!LkrL!,w_270,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack.com%2Fimg%2Femail%2Fpublish-button%402x.png]https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJx0kUmO3SAURVcDs7JojJsBg0jO30AWYNE8_FEMWPgRpXYf2ZWK_iA15HJ1OOg6g7CV-q5bDjHH8wn-7Wz2dDUeGEumXveeT2qioPk4DEwyOXMKycR93SBDNQh-NfhyqyZOn9rzwYIVohdSzRMIBWCNn8M8CWHMNNCoBROKCz4xqWbFO9mBnQcFLjDwwhkWOiMEhCFw0rO0ie4yQ-N-dq4kGs81VLhNNNYGdNdPxOMk8hsRDyIer-3rGLfcDiIfDdN6llYdELl8logYrjyBjy0Rudzcv6ErGSEjkUsoBaF-xiYdJm6ZyMU0LCHuO_i3f5VL7sf95vebJRdLenZzu62k4tteP9SGSuQy8t9Hz-jR7OpKSi1HfF8hG7uD__jf0ewenblmWaPXalTjSKv-P5WezfqSTMx6B0SoZwm5IFD8cup2Qr3AvRgUV6xn9JcWfwIAAP__T-G5Kg [https://eotrx.substackcdn.com/open?token=eyJtIjoiPDIwMjUxMjE4MDM1OTUxLjMuZWI5NjVlY2YwZWQyY2EwZi5hMjJlZjZmMUBtZzIuc3Vic3RhY2suY29tPiIsInUiOjQyNjUxNTA0MCwiciI6ImJAZW1haWwuZ29tb2R1bHIuY29tIiwiZCI6Im1nMi5zdWJzdGFjay5jb20iLCJwIjpudWxsLCJ0IjpudWxsLCJhIjpudWxsLCJzIjo1NzU3NywiYyI6InVuZmluaXNoZWQtc3Vic2NyaXB0aW9uIiwiZiI6dHJ1ZSwicG9zaXRpb24iOiJib3R0b20iLCJpYXQiOjE3NjYwMzAzOTEsImV4cCI6MTc2ODYyMjM5MSwiaXNzIjoicHViLTAiLCJzdWIiOiJlbyJ9.JGqzcqo9zzGYnteSIm6fNx-erCAzaeEq2AvD5T0GOH0][https://email.mg2.substack.com/o/eJx0kMuKKyEURb8mzm5xtHxl4LcURz1W5JYafDTk75tk0PSkxwsWa--Ak87WX27VlGseD4r_xvIj9PycuVUWnYzcKsvIcaM17LDfOaOC-TpOqtRxUjxw_qLKcvZwmMxuA6UISisBEnkI1uwWJNekuWHZCRCKC25hV3fFt30jf9eKQgKKIiCkDYWgpBO_SSin2N5lE8P_LbTC8jhSp0-Jm30Rey5_hFbKqnm-DqroL4o_6MoB34uOHJ0yyhjWnb9J-Ai2s5UW19U_5rF8bAVzdRfNSX20VNskNv98aQ3qb7EUWnEFEtiXE98BAAD__00Gc50]