Good morning. Hello. How are you? #1008
Travel, bitching about Substack’s web editor, TV surveillance
Good morning. Hello. Greetings from RDU, aka Raleigh Durham International Airport, where I am sitting at gate D5, awaiting a Delta flight to LGA. It is on one of those fancy new Airbus planes I used to obsess over when I took this route weekly. One day, Delta was gonna have these fancy new planes. But it’ll be years from now, I says to myself. No relevance to my life. By then I will be living a life of leisure and retirement. Lol.
I’m typing this entry into Safari, because Substack, even though it has an app, does not let you actually compose an entry in the app. I am reminded of Steven Levy’s insightful comments to Steve Jobs on the launch of the iPad, where he pointed out that the iPad was entirely a consumption machine, one could not create on it. Word is that Steve took the criticism quite seriously. And I suppose that is why, to this day, Apple keeps insisting we’re gonna use Garage Band on an iPad. Anyone ever tried this? I bet it’s terrible.
Substack’s mobile web implementation of its text editor leaves something to be desired and most of the time, I’m typing words below the keyboard, and I can’t actually see them (this is almost certainly because it ignores the accessibility settings and is bungling my larger text). The iOS keyboard is broken enough as it is. I suspect this entry will be riddled with typos even though I will check it more thoroughly than normal (which, we all knows is not at all.
God I hate airports these days they are so bad, from small indignities like corporate partnerships making it nearly impossible to find your soda of choice, to larger ones like continuing security theater. I saw some eager young corporate woman, couldn’t have Ben more than 24, 25, professionally dressed with all the accoutrements of a woman traveling from NY or Charlotte to RDU for work at one of her clients at Research Triangle Park; a burgeoning business road warrior in the making (burgeoning and “in the making” that was redundant wasn’t it?) Well anyway, it struck me: what must it be like to be an eager young corporate climber and traveler just starting out in the year 2023? Some things are better, I suppose. American airport architecture has climbed out of its absolute nadir of the 1980ms and 1990’s, though not by much. She will be less likely to endure the travails of CRJ900s or even, god help us, prop planes
But other things are worse. Virtually every charming, independent corporate eatery is gone. The taxi/Uber thing sucks. Rental cars have all been relegated to the hinterlands. The charming, small, urban airport is a dying beast. Travelers are more miserable. Airline points programs are more stingy and just a small cog in the wheel of the larger points ecosystem primarily dependent on your card spend, and more and more companies are keeping their points. The food sucks. Everyone is miserable. I don’t know if I could do it these days, and that’s coming from an airport/travel family who grew up worshipping it.
And never mind the mask situation which is a no-win Faustian bargain of misery. I am wearing one, or course. Other humans are cesspools. I love them, but from a distance. Except you. I’d hug you.
I have just realized that Substack does not respect the double-space tap as a text replacement for a period and I’m realizing this entre entry so far probably doesn’t have periods and I swear to god I am going to murder someone.
After me extracting a dozen promises that she would be kind, Emma reports that morning prep and school delivery mostly went okay. I will now take credit for it. I really hope Jane is kind all week to my poor wife who really hates mornings. So far so good.
We got a new TV a few weeks ago and after about two seconds of me thinking I could hang it myself I called the experts and they finally came yesterday and hung it on the wall and wow that thing is bright. And huge. I’m pleased. And Emma’s pleased because it doesn’t have a large dark blob spanning half the screen, like the old one. It still monitors everything you do and sends it all back to the mothership for ads, of course. And as a practitioner in that craft I can tell you that that shit makes almost no difference to ad efficacy and certainly not any difference to ROI for the end advertiser. It’s a giant money sink, an entire ecosystem of money passing from one entity to another, all for absolutely no point, zero productivity, and that’s coming from someone who profoundly believes in the good that advertising can do. It really is amazing. It’s just this giant economic phenomenon that has absolutely zero bearing on reality. A systemic, institutional version of David Graeber’s Bullshit Jobs theory. Bullshit industries.
“But Rick aren’t you in that industry,” you ask? Well, yes but I am trying to break the wheel here. Am I making progress? Eh. Is it a worthy cause? Almost?
I suppose it doesn’t really matter if 40 billion dollars passes through six intermediaries and employs a bunch of people before spitting out the other end, having accomplished nothing but skimming. Seems a uniquely 21st century American, late capitalist phenomenon. Why not. Not like it’s starting wars or trying to take over the country and turn it fascist or helping the Russians.
Mostly.
Well, anyway. The TV is nice.
Daddy Jane Dance Party was great last night. Lots of meatball. Lots of Lego. She is getting obsessed with Lego to the exclusion of everything else. It is adorable and mildly terrifying.
I have boarded now. These new Airbus 220-100s are nice. But zero under-seat storage. And a 2-2 configuration in first instead of the old 1-2 of the CRJs which means you have to sit next to someone which sucks.
It also means I better post this before they close the door. Sorry no playlist today. Also, no way I can pull the holding off on this editor. Too tedious. Sorry. Tomorrow. I promise. Maybe.
Off we go into the wild blue yonder.
Still haven't been on an A220. Jealous.