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Jan 12 2021

Issue #21

I spend way too much time and money on the internet so you don't have to.

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"Buildings break your heart, especially when you invest them with your ideas and your identity—especially when you make them symbols not just of who you are but of who you are supposed to be. They break your heart because they are themselves destined to be broken. The Babylonians destroyed the First Temple of Jerusalem and the Romans the Second, both as the necessary precondition for casting the people who’d built them to the winds. I imagine that the Jews who witnessed those sieges and assaults thousands of years ago felt the way I felt on January 6, when I watched the Capitol come under invasion and, for a few preposterous moments, entertained the touching possibility that the idea the building symbolizes might repel the invaders from the building itself."
It feels like the 13th month of 2020 and I cannot stop doomscrolling. I'm working on it but I know I can't be only one. I've gone as far as making a lock screen background that reads "Put your damn phone down."

My feeble attempts to stay away from my phone (and the onslaught of news coverage) are at least reinforcing my intentions for the year. (Intentions rather than resolutions was what I was trying to articulate last issue but a long-time-reader-but-first-time-caller beat me to it.)

What did I do instead?
  • Watched The Minimalists which I really liked (aside from the strange theatrical monologues) but it made me start side-eyeing everything I own. "Stuff" has really been on my mind lately after sitting amongst it all for the past year and I like the idea of their challenges.
  • Watched The Fugitive which I had never seen but I highly recommend. My recommendation is obviously irrelevant as I'm probably the only person who hadn't seen it. Joe tried to sell me on the sequel but that's a hard pass.
  • Watched Manhunt: Deadly Games which I'm on the fence about recommending. It's about the 1996 Olympic Park bombing and the subsequent manhunt...which started with Richard Jewell. We binged the first five or six episodes but the back half took a quite a few creative liberties.
  • Drank a lot of water...because #intentions but also because apparently my body can't run on iced coffee alone. Trying to do the same? Instead of lugging around a gallon jug, I do my best to drink four of these a day. Also, water is a million times easier to drink with a straw and that is a fact. 
  • Finalized my website revamp and I'm really proud of it - it looks best via desktop! The Blog includes all past  issues of The Collective and all future issues will be uploaded as well. Poke around but keep in mind that I'm working on updating all the partner/photography credits and there are probably a spelling error or two. I'll buy you a coffee if you help me find them.
The Jan. 6 Capitol Hill riots incited by President Trump are falsely being compared to the Black Lives Matter protests. There is no comparison to what happened on Wednesday.
How one of publishing’s most hyped books became its biggest horror story — and still ended up a best seller.
The most disenfranchised among us are left to pick up the literal pieces. *This piece punched me right in the gut.*
A modern retelling of Jane Eyre, this novel is supposedly a fantastic-ly twisty, very Gone Girl-esque thriller.
Part biography and part self-help, What Would Frida Do? explores the feminist icon's signature style, outspoken politics, and boldness in love and art, even in the face of pain and heartbreak. The book celebrates her larger than life persona as a woman who loved passionately and lived ambitiously, refusing to remain in her husband's shadow. Each chapter shares intimate stories from her life, revealing how she overcame obstacles by embracing her own ideals.
I am so excited for this book which is being described as "The Crucible meets True Grit." Here's one of many rave reviews.
Blame The Minimalists. I didn't put together any shopping finds this week - I've been trying to purge in addition to a spending freeze - but you can always shop my ShopStyle page via the link below.
The city's residents knew a storm was coming, but what they saw was more surreal than they could have expected—and they're afraid it's not over.
What would you get done if you only had until 10:30 a.m. to work today? Do that first. *Helpful if you're having trouble focusing right now.*
GQ caught up with the man who lead the crowdsourced social media effort that ID'd two Capitol Hill rioters.
It me. I'm Collin. Shockingly, I hate talking about myself but here are the CliffsNotes. 31, Texan turned cruise ship character turned Texan turned Chicagoan turned Texan. Event designer and planner. Interior designer and stylist. Corporate badass. Partner and double dog dad. Cursed with an aggressive gluten intolerance but also a passion for bread and no f*cks to give. Why a newsletter? It gives me a creative outlet with a deadline and my therapist says these things are important. Plus, I love to read, shop, share, and most importantly spend time on the internet. I don't sleep.

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