Newsletter #019
This blog was adapted from my monthly newsletter, which you can subscribe to here.
Hi, friends! Here’s 10 things worth sharing:
I happen to be the proud winner of the 18+ age group in the Johnson County Election Day Sticker Contest. If you’re voting in JoCo, grab the red and blue sticker with lil stick figures holding hands – that one is mine! Please send me a selfie if you get one. It’s really fun to contribute something like that and I enjoy seeing the pictures.
The other designs are from a bunch of kids that are more talented than me, so everyone assumes that all the stickers were made by kids but now you can correct them and assure that this design was created by your 37 year old friend, Justin. The Kansas Secretary of State presented awards to each winner and asked me, “So, where are you going to school?” That is a true story.
-If you enjoyed watching the Brewers cruise through the World Series, you may like this homage to baseball card designs by Elizabeth Goodspeed, a self-proclaimed sports hater and one of the best design writers out there.
I have a similar affinity for ball cards: it was the topic of the first video I made that time I tried to be a #DesignInfluencer.
-“The things that unite us are so much bigger than the things that divide us. SO much bigger.” I was glad to hear a politician trying to bring Americans together as I watched Abdul El-Sayed on Meet the Press. Some people may argue that he doesn’t mean it, but I’m not sure I care (personally, I believe the guy). I think the words we say are important, that our kids are watching the way our leaders talk, and I’m glad there are prominent people sharing messages like this on national television in 2026.
-“The kids get it. They’re not trying to be nostalgic for something they never experienced. They’re trying to escape what they experience every day.” Read this story about a man who fixed typewriters for 70 years and another who left a steady career to become his apprentice.
-I loved Man on the Run, a documentary about Paul McCartney in the years following the Beatles’ breakup. I had never given Wings’ music much respect, but they made some great albums that I didn’t know about! I was also glad to see plenty of Linda McCartney in the movie. Linda was an elite photographer even before she met Paul – she is basically the Paul McCartney of music photography, which is why there are so many great photos of the Beatles and McCartney family life.
After finishing the doc I wanted to dive more into the music, so I made this playlist called After the Beatles of every solo album from every Beatle in chronological order. We’ve been slowly listening through the 31 hours (31!) of songs in the studio and it puts into perspective how prolific the Fab Four was, even after they broke up in 1969. (Which was not Linda’s fault!)
-I’m obsessed with Old Friend, this film photobooth that opened inside a luggage store in New York City. “As we look back on our photos, we are like, ‘Oh, this is an old friend,’”
-Well, I told you that I read East of Eden and loved it and now I am here to tell you that ThE BoOk wAs BeTtER tHaN thE MoVIe. This is the first time in my life I’ve been able to say that but, you guys, they basically cut out my favorite character?!?Whatever… it would be a great show if I hadn’t read the book.
-“The life that fits you at 25 will probably strangle you when you’re 40.” Mark Manson (author of The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck) shares 33 Things Everyone Should Know How To Do.
-”You can build a powerful network long before anybody in it is powerful.” Justin Welsh on the power of making friends and shamelessly supporting them.
Related: This reminds me of Austin Kleon’s bit about “scenius”, the phenomenon where “many of the people who we think of as lone geniuses were actually part of a whole scene of people who were supporting each other, looking at each other’s work, copying from each other, stealing ideas, and contributing ideas.” Did you know that J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis were in a writers group that met at the pub every Tuesday?
-“The stars don’t shine, they burrrn…” I had a special gummy before watching Encanto and, boy can I tell you, this song HITS HARD.
-Molly’s 11th thing:
”My brother works for the local library, and this week they put out a silly parody of this 1980s war on drugs commercial. Watch the short promo video from the Johnson County Library here!”
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Cheers,
Justin
NEW brand work! 🌴☕️🌴
Coming Soon: Joe’s Roadside Coffee
My buddy Joe bought a coffee truck!!! We recently launched the brand and, after a few more updates to the truck, he will be serving up good vibes all around L.A.