What I'm Up To
​Volume 107

Hey friends,
​
Here’s what I’ve been up to since Vol. 106……
​​
1. May Happenings
​Jet lag hit hard after returning from Japan. I was in a daze for a good five days. Thankfully, my team did a great job while I was gone. Reentry was about as smooth as it could be after such an epic trip.

I know the saying is “April showers bring May flowers.” This year, May just had more showers. That’s kept temps bearable and everything green. My Midwestern wife would be so proud of me going on about the weather…

Jason Hardy came to town for a Dealonomy board meeting — we're investors, and Wendy sits on the board. We dined at Paul Qui’s newest spot, Kitsu Nori. Loved it, but it is a crime to serve sushi without carrying Asahi Super Dry.

My college buddy, Andrew, dropped in to see his oldest graduate from college. We made ribs and caught up over beers. Author Dorie Clarke visited with her wife, Alexis Redding, for a symposium on college mental health. She hosted a dinner with some Austin greats: Sam Horn, Neville Medhora, Prakash Raman, and Nick Gray. I caught up with KW friends – Anna, Sarah, and Meg – after our mastermind. And finally, Ashley stayed at our home for several days to work on Her Best Life projects with Wendy and Jane Devine. We had a full house this month. I loved every minute.

Wendy and I hosted our annual charity poker tournament, Aces for Austin, for about 200 players at the Austin Club. Sarah Reynolds’s mom, Debbie, came in first. And together, we raised over $100,000 for Explore Austin. “All in,” we’ve raised almost $1.3M since we started this in 2011. Huzzah!

Gus wrapped up his junior year and moved back in for the summer. I’ve never been happier to hear someone tromp around upstairs. We grilled burgers and hot dogs for a stormy Memorial Day weekend.

Finally, my chief of staff, Carly, had her baby girl on the 29th. “Birdie” is the youngest of three ginger girls. Our work team threw a “sprinkle” for Carly at Matt’s El Rancho on her last day. She’ll be nesting with Birdie for the next few months, and we’ll miss her.

2. What I’m Reading
​I couldn’t resist the pull of Matt Dinniman’s Dungeon Crawler Carl series. I powered through The Butcher’s Masquerade, The Eye of the Bedlam Bride, This Inevitable Ruin, and A Parade of Horribles. Some of the mechanics of the world get tiresome, but Dinneman has been consistently laugh-out-loud funny and very clever with plot twist. It’s been many years since I let myself get lost in a series. Now, I get to wait a year or so before Book 9. Sigh.

My buddy Steve Kamb’s book, How to Try Again, comes out in June. I got an early copy for a podcast we’re recording. Steve founded Nerd Fitness and developed programs for ordinary people to hit their goals. He writes with humor and heart. Failing is normal. And Steve shows how to start again.

I read Peaks and Valleys by Spencer Johnson, M.D. for research. I can see why it is a classic and am reminded that I really don’t like business fables.

Shout out to my friend Cory for recommending Seuss’s Thidwick the Big-Hearted Moose. I especially love the “why” behind the recommendation.

3. What I’m Watching
​Wendy and I wrapped up two series – Rooster (HBO) and Margot’s Got Money Troubles (Apple+). Rooster stars Steve Carell as a popular novelist teaching writing at a small New England college to be close to his daughter. Smart, witty and, at times, poignant. Margo is based on a novel we loved, and Apple+ did a great job. Nick Offerman and Michelle Pfeiffer steal the show as Margo misfit parents.

I watched Crime 101 (Amazon) with Mark Ruffalo, Halle Berry, and Chris Helmsworth. It’s a stylish action thriller with some solid work by Ruffalo and Berry. Remarkably Bright Creatures (Netflix) with Sally Fields was exactly as expected, tender and treacly sweet.

We loved the documentary Marty, Life is Short (Netflix). It’s the story of Martin Short and his late wife. The home videos with their family and basically every big comedian and movie start of the era is remarkable. I keep thinking about the kids. They grew goofing around with Tom Hanks, Steven Spielberg, Steve Martin and so many others. That was their normal. When will they be making films?

Finally, we took in The Devil Wears Prada 2 at the AlamoDrafthouse. I liked it enough that Wendy and I watched the original the next evening.

That’s it for this month. Please reply back and let me know what you’re up to!

Be well, do good deeds, and eat tacos!
Jay

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