PM 56: James, Ramen and Memory Palaces
Hi all, it’s been a while!
Life has been lifing (and I mean that in the most positive sense) but I’ve stayed curating. Loads for you to check out below. But first something that has been on my mind lately.
While we all worry about AI taking all the jobs or the devolution of politics, I’m seeing a more insidious thing happening in our cities. And I see a positive end to this but only if we pay attention.
Let me illustrate the problem with a few stories.
My neighborhood grocery store.
I live within walking distance of a grocery store here in Texas. When we moved here about ten years ago, the store had 14 checkout stands. Each stand had a cashier and a bagger. That meant 28 people manning the checkout points during busy hours—28 jobs, with probably double that number of people benefiting from the income. And back then, Austin had already banned plastic bags, so we brought our own, even before recycling became part of the culture wars.
Now, there’s more around us—more homes, more coffee shops, more donut stops. A lot more.
But today? That same store has only two checkout points staffed by a cashier and a bagger. Four jobs. And eight self-checkout stations manned by a single cashier. Five jobs total. Maybe ten family members are benefitting.
The Starbucks near us is also within walking distance, and I used to visit it a lot more about ten years ago. I recently went to Ramen Tatsu-ya for lunch, and there I saw an old barista from that Starbucks. They’re now a cashier at the ramen place. I was glad to see them—but also a bit sad. The job didn’t have the same kind of craft to it as their barista work had.
A friend of mine, a designer and architect, had a studio about eight minutes from where I live. He sold the building. The new owners have turned it into a bar. A place of creation—six employees, a prototyping room, a drafting/showroom—now just a place of pure consumption. Some bars are about belonging, a gathering spot for locals. Not this one. It’s owned by a faceless company.
I could share more stories. Four. Five more. But you get my point.
I’m an optimist. But also a realist. We’re focusing on the future—new problems, new planets—while ignoring what’s happening in our neighborhoods. Our communities are being gutted. Is a bagger job one worth saving? I don’t know. But I do know people need purpose and a paycheck. It keeps the fabric of society intact.
Something is off. No. A lot is off.
And what does the U.S. do best? Ignore the real problems. Create fake issues. Find villains. Take sides.
Reza and I have covered some of these topics on Future Forward Cities—our podcast about cities, their histories, and strategic foresight for the future. We just launched Season 2! And we’ve got a new website: FutureForward.fm.
Please listen, like, share, and comment. Also, get in touch with us through our email hello@futureforward.fm. Some of our episodes have covered Equity, Energy, Technology, Infrastructure, and many more city-related (and urgently important) topics. Check out the episodes here.
Now to some interesting things I’ve read, watched and engaged with over the last few months
A trippy yet solid visualization of Andy Weir’s The Egg. One of the most inspiring short stories you will ever read (or in this case, watch).
Microsoft and Constellation Power signed a 20-year power purchase agreement for power generated by Nuclear Energy at Three Mile Island (which will add $16Bn to the state GDP). We’re restoring nuclear to power AI, even as the power industry is about to be consumed by AI. Ourobourous anyone?
AI or Crypto or ‘Burning Man’ (and its like) have become the new religion of this generation/time. So people are still choosing their religion. But what is it that’s emptying out churches if we are all still yearning for something higher than us?
I read Huckleberry Finn as a kid. But only the mind of Percival Everett could tell the same story with such wit and nuance from the perspective of ‘James’ bka Jim the runaway slave.
There are millions of podcasts (I have one :)) so you’re spoiled for choice. If you want to elevate your podcast game though, I would suggest you start listening to ‘Memory Palace’ by Nate Dimeo and/or ‘Decoder Ring’ by Willa Paskin. Masterful storytelling. And the ‘Memory Palace’ Book is one of the more interesting books of historical non-fiction that I’ve read in ages.
Micheal Kimmellmann asks ‘How Can We Save The Best Parts of Our Cities?’
I coach soccer for both my kids (rec league and club competition) and I’ll be getting my college-level soccer coaching license in a few weeks (Yay!) With a dream to coach an U18 team (Nigeria/Ghana/USA) to the World Cup some day :)) and I’ve seen a lot. And learned a lot. Rory Smith articulates all of my experiences in this beautiful final post for his stellar ‘On Soccer’ newsletter. I hope to follow what he does next.
Online shopping on Amazon has turned us all into horrible people IRL. Don’t believe me? Read this personal narrative of ‘Working Black Friday in the Rich Part of Town’
Walking through cities in the US after having read ‘Emergent Tokyo’, by Jorge Almazan + Studiolab, means you see cities differently. Literally and figuratively. I promise.
Till the next issue of PM, which I hope comes to you before the end of the year, be well and be kind!
Best
Seyi