Howdy, hello, and hey there, It’s that funny time of the year when many of us have to gear up to wind down. It’s a subtle reminder that in our capitalist society, rest, something that should be free, has a price. And not everyone can afford it. This week, to find the balance between the constant input and output of work and with rest in the forefront of my mind, I’m digging into the archives to share part one of my list of things I’ve loved reading, writing, or contributing to this year. Your friend,
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P.S. A housekeeping note: In the next several issues, I’ll be experimenting with sending out fewer links in the Weekly Reads. The aim is to keep serving quality reads, but at a less eye-watering density for all. LMK what you think! Don’t be shy; hit reply.
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1. 🤐 Why Can’t People Talk About Their Money? (Bloomberg) A Q&A with yours truly on facing your financial fears, learning the art of salary negotiation and why investing in crypto is a form of “schmuck” insurance. (If that paywall gets ya, the interview is also here). 2. 👀 What Comes After Ambition? (Elle) Hustle culture is dead. Did American women’s drive go away, or has it morphed into something new—and maybe better? 3. 👾
My first impressions of web3. (Moxie) A little dense, but insightful nonetheless. 4. 🤓 A bookkeeping(ish)thing - Financial advice for artists who think they're 'bad with money' (Paco on NPR’s Life Kit) I spoke with journalist and illustrator Ruth Tam about freelancing and being a self-employed creative 5. 💲 When Debts Become Unpayable, They Should Be Forgiven. (Jacobin) “In Mesopotamia, an agrarian economy, most debts began to be owed to the palace or the temples. Obligations were paid throughout the year. In the third millennium Sumer, or second millennium Babylonia, if you go to a bar during the crop year, you’d run up a tab to the alehouse, and to the palace for advances of animals, water, or agricultural inputs, and everything was done by credit. The debts would all be paid on the threshing floor, in grain, and a unit of grain was equal to a unit of silver. But sometimes, you would have a crop failure, or war, or drought, and you couldn’t pay. And at that time, like in the laws of Hammurabi, you’d say, “If the storm god, Hadad, comes and ruins the crops, then the debts don’t have to be paid.” This is how society worked, basically, in the third, second, and even into the first millennium. When a new ruler took the throne, or when there were other reasons — a war was over, or there was any reason for a debt cancellation — you’d cancel the debts, you’d liberate the debt servants to go back to their families, you’d give them back the pledges that they’d made. Because what would happen if you hadn’t wiped out the debts? All of a sudden all these people that owed debts would become the servants of the person who they owed them to, a wealthy person.”
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I’m partnering with Leo Aquino, writer, award-winning journalist, poet and founder of Queer & Trans Wealth to giveaway copies of my book to queer and trans folks. Giveaway details here. Leo is also hosting a book club featuring my book, Finance for the People. If you’d like to attend the book club event at The Pop-Hop in LA on January 12, 2023, RSVP here.
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