Issue 301: We're Back, Baby!
Pumpkin carving, zoom backgrounds, junk mail and battery anxiety...
HELLO!
…And welcome (back) to Jacob All Trades.
The last time I sent a newsletter was a few weeks into the pandemic. Which… feels like a decade ago. I’ve moved from TinyLetter to Mail Chimp, and now to Substack. Eventually, Substack will allow subscribers to support this newsletter financially, but for a little while, it’ll remain free.
What is Jacob All Trades? Well… it’s a place to share my thoughts, opinions, and work, along with a curated collection of things I think you might like. Anything goes, but subjects most frequently covered are art, design, pop-culture, politics, filmmaking, comedy, public policy, sustainability, architecture, photography, and more. The kind of things I’d excitedly tell you about if we were hanging out in person.
I used to open each newsletter with ‘Here’s An Idea’ — a segment where I pitch one of the many ideas I’d pursue if I had unlimited time + resources. I’ll probably still do that pretty often, but I’m no longer going to hold myself to it each newsletter because… it takes a long time to write!
Hope you’re well, safe, sane, and staying creative. Enjoy the newsletter, and don’t be a stranger.
-Jacob
HERE’S AN IDEA
With Halloween in the rearview mirror and decorative squash season still in full swing, I’ll ask the question that everyone’s wondering: HOW COME THERE ISN’T A COMPETITION REALITY SHOW ABOUT PUMPKIN CARVING??
Across broadcast and streaming platforms there are hundreds of competition reality shows. Netflix alone has a couple of dozen - including one where people try to make the best meal out of their leftovers (really). If there can be a show that finds the next top LEGO builder, glassblower, or puppet fabricator… I think we can have a pumpkin carving show that is fun for both kids and stoned grownups.
Get someone who loves Halloween to host it, call it something dumb like ‘Pump It Up,’ ‘Carved!,’ ‘Good Gourd!’, or ‘Jack Off!’ (k, maybe not that last one), and have a new season come out every year in early October. I can’t believe Netflix’s algorithm hasn’t already come up with this.
CONSUMPTION JUNCTION
Three things I’ve seen, heard, or otherwise experienced recently that have been on my mind.
Joe Ducet’s wind turbine wall is “designed to be as aesthetically pleasing as it is functional… a kinetic wall made up of an array of rotary blades that spin individually, driving a mini generator that creates electricity. The electricity is utilized in the home or business, can be stored in a wall-mounted battery, or can even be fed back into the national grid to provide revenue for the owner.”
– Design Boom
Amid a notable resurgence in strikes, a rise in union membership, and reluctance to give up the hybrid working models that have become popular during the pandemic… researchers have come up with a way to calculate the exact amount of ‘bullshit’ happening at your job. That number… is the OBPS or Organizational Bullshit Perception Scale.
The trailer for Craig Gillespie’s ‘Pam & Tommy’ came out this week and it looks great. Chock-full of ‘90s references and retro-tech and a great cast. I’m excited to watch this.
SOMETHING BEAUTIFUL
These beautiful midcentury styled illustrations by Pam Wishbow are the perfect antidote for Zoom and Google Hangouts’ cheesy-ass backgrounds.
SAY NO TO TRASH
Do you get junk mail from Spectrum? I’m already (unfortunately) a customer and still get an alarming amount of mail offers. Many include a giant plastic index card. Most have alarming language on the outside that makes me think I missed a bill. All end up in the recycling bin.
If these A-holes put 50% of their ‘scaring customers with trash’ budget into a ‘keep the Internet working’ budget maybe I could stay on a full Zoom call sometime.
That’s why I was thrilled to learn about a way to opt-out of all Spectrum mail.
FROM THE VAULT
I was pulling some commercial parody samples for a pitch and came across these old LG spots I directed. We were pretty boxed in with the creative, but they’re still fun.
Super fun performances from Alison Wong, Ronnie Adrian, Mike McLendon, and voiceover from Sarah Claspell. Produced by Francesca DeLutis, shot by Eric Bader, edited by Esau Hamadanyan — and, lots of other heavy hitters (Jordy Scheinberg on wardrobe, Armando Macias on sound, Tony Pizza production design) behind the scenes.
FWIW, I used to LOVE having a phone where you could pop out the battery instead of having to charge!
Alrighty, that’s it for this week. Feel free to leave a comment or share the newsletter using the links below.
Party on,
Jacob
Glad you're back!
Outrageous Pumpkins on the Food Network