To My First Fifty Subscribers
Thank you
This past week I reached fifty subscribers with my newsletter! Not a huge number but it feels like my first real milestone.
It’s been harder than I thought it would be to gain subscribers, and I did not think it would be easy. It shouldn’t be easy.
When you view it this way, it looks pretty nice.
But this is more accurate.
Also, people are actually reading it!
My understanding is that this is a pretty good open rate. There are many other data points and analytics that go on behind the scenes of a newsletter. I’m not interested in any of that. I’m a words guy, not a numbers guy. I’m focused on writing. This is why I’m on Substack. They handle all that, and the data are there if I want to look.
The reason I’m writing this today is to say thank you, to all fifty of you.
It’s a crazy world we live in that I can broadcast my thoughts to you all each week and some of you actually read them, and enjoy them, and say nice things to me about them. It’s a blessing, and I do not take it lightly. It’s also humbling.
Humbling when friends, family, and strangers take the time to subscribe and actually read and appreciate my stuff.
Humbling when people seem to ignore it
Humbling when I go a month or longer without gaining a subscriber.
Humbling when I lose a subscriber.
Overall, it’s been a great experience for me in writing this each week, so my only hope is that it’s half as good for you in reading it. Based on some feedback I’ve gotten, it is for some of you, and that makes me very happy.
One of the best compliments I’ve received from several people is that they look forward to my email each week. Without my weekly self-imposed deadline of Sunday, I’m not sure I’d be able to make this newsletter work. It keeps me accountable to myself and to you, but the day is arbitrary and beside the point. The point is that you can count on an email from me every Sunday come hell or high water.1 And it’s an exercise in self-discipline for me to get it done. I find this rewarding and transferable to every other aspect of life.
What I’m Reading
“Fire and Blood” - By George R.R. Martin
https://www.amazon.com/Fire-Blood-Thrones-Targaryen-History/dp/152479628X
For the last 5 years or so I’ve read mostly non-fiction/classics.
The TV shows I watch are almost entirely educational YouTube videos or documentaries on history, philosophy, investing, etc.
Recently I watched the second season of House of the Dragon (an HBO series based on “Fire and Blood) and loved it. I needed some out-there-fantasy-fun in my life. Since season 3 will not be out for another year or so, I decided I’d give this book a read. I’m about one hundred pages in, and it’s been a joy to read so far.
It’s not high-brow or pretentious in any way, and I don’t mean to short-sell it - because the writing, characters, and story are all very good. But in many ways, it’s just silly and entertaining.
Sometimes you need to consume things just for fun, not only things that will “make you smarter.” I had forgotten this.
What I’m Watching
I recently started re-watching The Sopranos. In my opinion, it’s the greatest show ever made, and it changed television forever, for the better.
Peter Theil might be one of the smartest humans on the planet. It never ceases to amaze me how adept and unafraid Rogan is at talking to someone like Theil. I’ve seen a lot of chatter on the internet about how this conversation went. Many are saying Rogan looks foolish next to Theil. My counter is that you and I would look more foolish than he does.
If you haven’t read my essay on Rogan, here it is:
The Joe Rogan Experience:
In early 2022 Joe Rogan was public enemy number one in the eyes of the mainstream media and half the country. Every other day there was a hit piece written about him, or he was trending on Twitter where many were crying for him to be de-platformed by Spotify for promoting “COVID misinformation,” or for any number of other “violations.” As a regular list…
It’s one of the better things I’ve written, and I think it will remain relevant anytime some Rogan controversy gets stirred up (about five times a year on average:)
Again, thank you so much for reading! It means the world to me.
Enjoy the rest of your day!
-Sam
Also the title of one of my favorite films. If you haven’t seen it, please do so at your earliest convenience. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hell_or_High_Water_(film)
Humbling when u win or lo– take a step back, very true :)
P.S. I just watched True Romance - I put that spectacular scene between Walken and the dad on my IG story, and captioned it with "Never forget when Tony Soprano was just another underling of the King of New York" 😁🗽
Hell or High Water looks awesome! I love a good western!