avatarLaura M. Quainoo

Summary

The web content is an invitation to join the "Readers and Writers Book Club" on Medium, sharing of favorite Medium reads, a recommendation for a non-Medium article, a reflective Bible verse, questions about Medium features, and a mention of an upcoming UFO docu-series by JJ Abrams.

Abstract

The article titled "Six On a Saturday For July 23, 2022" is a personal newsletter-style piece that engages readers with a variety of content. It starts with an invitation to a new book club initiative on Medium, the "Readers and Writers Book Club," which encourages communal reading and discussion without strict commitments, with the first book being "The Book of Night Women" by Marlon James. The author shares their favorite Medium articles of the week, touching on topics such as cultural appropriation, interracial relationships, and the harsh realities of prison systems, and recommends an external article from The Atlantic on the societal impact of the nuclear family concept. Additionally, the author reflects on a Bible passage concerning wealth and justice, poses technical questions about Medium's commenting and publishing features, and expresses anticipation for JJ Abrams' UFO docu-series on Showtime. The article concludes with an open invitation for readers to share their own stories and experiences in the comments.

Opinions

  • The author is enthusiastic about the "Readers and Writers Book Club" and its potential to foster a sense of community among Medium readers and writers.
  • They show appreciation for thought-provoking articles on Medium, highlighting pieces that challenge societal norms and provoke deep discussions.
  • The author values external perspectives and knowledge, as demonstrated by the recommendation of an article from The Atlantic.
  • A reflective opinion is offered on the timeless relevance of a Bible passage that criticizes the accumulation of wealth at the expense of laborers.
  • There is a sense of curiosity and slight frustration regarding Medium's platform functionality, particularly around comment highlighting and private publishing options.
  • The author is critical of crypto spam and the unintentional blocking of users, suggesting a need for better platform controls.
  • They express a personal interest in UFOs and are hopeful about the quality of JJ Abrams' docu-series on the subject.
  • The author encourages community engagement by asking readers to follow a promising new writer and by inviting everyone to share their thoughts and stories in the comments.

Six On a Saturday For July 23, 2022

An Invitation, Good Reads, UFOs and more…

Hi all… hope you’re feeling blessed and are embracing a peaceful weekend. As I do every Saturday, here are six random things that crossed my mind and my desk this past week that I’d like to share with you. Enjoy!

1. Please Join the “Readers and Writers Book Club” Here on Medium!

Good news, folks! Andrew Gaertner recently came up with the terrific idea of starting a book club especially for the readers and writers of Medium. Basically, we’ll read a book a month and aim to publish our thoughts about it on the same agreed upon date. If you’re not a writer, no worries, just please tune in on or around that date and let’s all do our best to comment on one another’s stories.

Understanding that we’re all busy, there’s no special commitment to be a part of this club. Whether you finish the book or not, you’re welcome to participate. And if you happen to skip a month of reading, no worries, just jump back in whenever you’re ready.

Our first selection for the Readers and Writers Book Club (RaWBC) is The Book of Night Women by Marlon James. You can find it wherever books are sold and in whichever format you prefer (Andrew recommends Black Garnet Books if you’re looking for a Black and woman-owned establishment). We’re aiming for all readers to publish thoughts about the book on August 25 using the tag: RaWBC. You’re welcome to publish after the 25th, just not before, please.

Future titles (fiction and nonfiction) will be decided amongst ourselves. Anyone can recommend books by contacting Andy or myself by messaging one of us here and you can also email me at [email protected].

Kindly leave a comment below if you plan on joining us or if you have any questions.

2. My Favorite Medium Reads This Week

These are never in any order, but first up in my favorite Medium reads this week is a magnificent essay by Kerry Connelly about White people’s longing for lost indigenous connections. Kerry explores the idea that a lot of the appropriating White people do of other people’s cultures stems from losing what they’ve had to relinquish in the effort to become White. There’s a lot to think about on this subject, so please take your time and don’t dismiss the idea without reading till the very end.

Next up, David Saint Vincent went HAM this week in his commentary about interracial sex and dating. If you’re familiar with David’s work, you know he’s a fearless cat who enjoys driving an issue all the way home and sitting it in your lap for you to deal with as you may. This is a sensitive topic for many and so it’s impressive to see a Black man (who loves Black women, don’t get it twisted) stand in what he believes to be true. Check his essay out here:

Finally, we have a rather sobering essay about the difficulties of having a loved one in prison. This isn’t as much about family separation as it is about the heartless, cruel and immoral way prisons go about separating families. Not all, but much of it is about money. When you read Aunty Jean’s essay, you’ll see just how petty institutions can be in extracting every cent they can from those on the outside who only want to remain in contact with their family on the inside. When you’re done reading, ladies, please leave a comment on Jean’s article if you have even one outfit that you’re positive can pass a visitor’s inspection. Like, seriously, what is wrong with these people?

3. A Non-Medium Article I’m Reading

Raffey doesn’t publish stories on Medium (yet?), but they always leave the best and most informative responses on our essays, right? Last week, under my article about all the crazy stuff Whiteness expects of White people, Raffey recommended two articles published in the Atlantic. I’m working my way through one about the nuclear family being a huge mistake. I’ve been mad busy, so it took me a few days to sit down with it (and I can be a slow reader at times), but, so far, it is an excellent read that’s helping me better understand some things about our society and how capitalism has changed the way we do family (seriously, the stench of capitalism is damn near written into our DNA at this point). Check it out and let me know what you think:

4. Something That Made Me Go Hmm…

I ran across a Bible scripture this week that made me pause to consider who this may apply to today. Whether you believe in the Bible or God or not, the book is full of wisdom and offers deep food for thought. Take a look at this passage and tell me in the comments who you think it could someday be applied to?

James 5:1–6 Reads:

Come now, you rich, weep and howl for the miseries that are coming upon you. 2 Your riches have rotted and your garments are moth-eaten. 3 Your gold and silver have corroded, and their corrosion will be evidence against you and will eat your flesh like fire. You have laid up treasure in the last days. 4 Behold, the wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, are crying out against you, and the cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts. 5 You have lived on the earth in luxury and in self-indulgence. You have fattened your hearts in a day of slaughter. 6 You have condemned and murdered the righteous person. He does not resist you.

I highlighted verse 4 and will give you bonus points if you can figure out who that might be applied to?

Even if you’re not a believer, how sad is it that 2,000 some odd years after this was written, we’re still dealing with the same issues and this scripture could easily apply to people in this present day? You’d think mankind would’ve grown out of its own foolishness by now, but nooooooo.

5. Medium Questions and a Special Request

I have a few questions about Medium that, if you guys could fill me in, I’d deeply appreciate.

One, I notice that when a response is in a standalone form (like its own story), I can highlight parts of the text. When it’s in a sidebar, I can’t. Sometimes a reply that starts as a standalone will end up in a sidebar by the time I return to it to respond. Is there a way to make comments stand alone or keep them there?

Two, is there a way to send a story to email subscribers without publishing to the public? I know we can share drafts for review, but I’m wondering is there a way to only publish to email subscribers?

Three, last week I said I’d never blocked anyone, but I think I accidentally lied. I have a couple of people on mute. Is that the same? I thought it wasn’t, but then I ordered a download of all of my content this week kand I noticed there’s a folder for blocked users and my muted ones are in there. I didn’t mean to block these people. I just wanted to silence them from my comments for a while. (And is it just me, but do you guys get crypto spam, too? I think I’m going to have to start blocking.)

Now, could you guys do me a tiny favor, please? I have a wise follower who is a reader for now. She says she’ll begin publishing once she gets to 100 followers and, trust me, she’s got some good stuff brewing inside of her (I can just tell by her responses). I’m so anxious to read her work that I’m asking everyone who reads this to please go follow Theodora now… thank you in advance!

6. TV Show I’ll Be Checking Out This Weekend

You’ve probably already seen it, but I’m only just now hearing JJ Abrams has a UFO docu-series on Showtime. I hope it doesn’t come with the cheezy music and creepy narration some of these productions use. I’m hopeful it’s of good quality and something I can binge in a day (it’s only four parts, but I’m not sure how long each episode is). I’m super interested in UFOs (or UAPs as they’re called now that they’ve gone mainstream) and so I’m hoping this is a treat. Have you seen it?

Your Turn

So that’s it for me. How was your week? The comments are wide open on Saturdays, so feel free to not only reply to what you’ve read here, but share links to your stories, interesting articles or anything else you want to talk about. We’re all ears. (P.S. I know I’ve been behind in reading comments for a couple of days, but I promise I’ll catch up this weekend, guys!)

Thanks for tuning in and don’t forget to start reading The Book of Night Women by Marlon James and use the RaWBC tag when you publish your thoughts about it on or after August 25th!

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