When I was in the military, "Mission Statement" guy was always busy. And I always knew to find another unit. A unit focused on optimizing its mission statement isn't contributing to the fight in meaningful way. That stuff is all leadership mumbo jumbo to get people promoted, the kind of people who should probably never be promoted.
Oct 12, 2022·edited Oct 12, 2022Liked by Matt Labash
Congrats on the One Year bingo. May there be many more. I was intrigued by the reference/link (the better man) to your Dad. I enjoyed the Anger Problem essay (where was I in late October last year? Oh yeah, fishing in the Chandeleurs) for a number of reasons. However, the practice of the "three-ring binder...of spiritual and moral instruction, with periodic updates,." was cool.
I discussed this with friends at a book-study I attend. They all asked: "What does he put in there?". This will be an ongoing topic for a while, as most of us are grandparents, or soon will be. It might even be worth another essay by you, if I have not missed one addressing this in the past year. In fact, maybe a few adults I know should get the same three-ring binder.
Love your writing, Matt. Am sorry that I missed your earlier reporting, but when JVL said 'subscribe' to one of the best writers and humans he knew, I decided to do it. You are a breath of fresh air (sorry, but the cliche fits!).
Glad to be here to see the first of what will hopefully be many. My son, having grown up hearing me marvel at your literary exploits back in the Weekly Standard days, alerted me to the existence of Slack Tide, so your talent is one of the increasingly rare ones that spans generations (right up there with the Kardashians or Wayne Newton). After all, what generation wouldn’t like to have a backstage perspective of the Christian professional wrestling world?
Has it been a year already? Time flies when you’re amusing/enlightening/entertaining me, Matt. Glad to have found you, and here’s hoping the news improves over the next 12 months.
Sounds silly but I always forget to listen to music. Ahhhh, Bonus Track never disappoints and always triggers some sort of musical journey for me. Thank you, Matt. Happy Birthday Slack Tide.
Happy anniversary to you and your wonderful writing. This afternoon we are celebrating four family members’ October birthdays with a Lasagna, a garden fresh salad with homemade blue cheese dressing, garlic bread made with fresh garlic and a carrot cake made with carrots from the neighbors’s garden. We ranch folks know how to eat! I will raise my glass of wine to celebrate you, as well. I think you were my first Substack subscription and I still get a kick out of you actually responding to my comments. Just as if I matter! You and Walter Kirn are my favorites. I so appreciate all the wonderful kind and considerate commenters you have cultivated. So, congratulations to all of us who get to read your stories.
Very excellent vanity project! God willing, I look forward to reading Slack Tide's 50th Anniversary publication. In 49 years I'll send Mr. Sip-sip bourbon to celebrate 50 years of fine writing achievements. Good bourbon for ML, on the porch with Solomon IV.
Maybe you could crowdsource your mission statement, put it on your masthead, and change it every month. Here is my entry: “Clever writing that makes you think at a price you’ll like!” (I wanted to suggest “What me worry?”, but that was grabbed long before we all started to worry about everything all the time.) Congratulations and thank you Matt.
Happy Birthday ST; my favorite thing is thinking about the musical pairing when I’m reading the script. I used to dream about being the person who picks the songs for movies. Turns out you’ve got a better chance of getting the director’s job. Maybe I need to substack. Always love your musical selections.
Just finding time to read this, and look! Already 104 comments! We are a vociferous bunch, aren’t we (especially that M. Trosino fellow with his indefatigable fingers).
So much has changed. Most magazines have gone tits up (crude, I know, but such a great expression). But can you imagine reading Time or Newsweek now?
I still read paper newspapers, because that’s still the best way to read the daily news (the discovery element of flipping pages cannot be replicated through scrolling on a screen), but I subscribe to the all the digital versions, too, to send articles to friends and to look up things I missed — the best of both worlds.
But what’s best about this new world of ours is stuff like this little substack of ours. I can’t remember how I first came across you (that was a bathtub of bourbon and three billion brain cells ago), but my life has been richer for it. In what other world can the writer come out from behind his computer and talk to us directly (and interrupt us while we’re talking amongst ourselves)?
So congratulations, Matt, and happy anniversary. I hope this has been more satisfying than writing for the Weekly Standard — and I hope you’re making enough scratch from our bargain subscriptions that your wife doesn’t make you go out and get a real job.
Sometimes I feel like you are in my head, or (worse? 😳) a brother from another mother. Thank you for the great reads, viewpoints, laugh and head shakes. Most of all, congrats on your 1 yr annie! We wish you many returns Master Slacktider!
Seeing that I’m a life-long slacker, I’m glad you’ve brought my tide in, Matt. And when I tire of treading water, I’ll just float.
When I was in the military, "Mission Statement" guy was always busy. And I always knew to find another unit. A unit focused on optimizing its mission statement isn't contributing to the fight in meaningful way. That stuff is all leadership mumbo jumbo to get people promoted, the kind of people who should probably never be promoted.
Congrats on the One Year bingo. May there be many more. I was intrigued by the reference/link (the better man) to your Dad. I enjoyed the Anger Problem essay (where was I in late October last year? Oh yeah, fishing in the Chandeleurs) for a number of reasons. However, the practice of the "three-ring binder...of spiritual and moral instruction, with periodic updates,." was cool.
I discussed this with friends at a book-study I attend. They all asked: "What does he put in there?". This will be an ongoing topic for a while, as most of us are grandparents, or soon will be. It might even be worth another essay by you, if I have not missed one addressing this in the past year. In fact, maybe a few adults I know should get the same three-ring binder.
[Forgive me for repeating part of a comment I already made.
It was part of my reply to another commenter
and thus unlikely to be seen by y'all.]
We gypsies and vagabonds
have become friends
as we sit enchanted
and dig deep to respond
to Matt's prose poetry.
Who knew?
He is as surprised
as we are!
And so we celebrate together
the mystery and blessing
of the Tide that binds.
With love and thanks to Matt
and Billy and Michael and Susan
and all you original devoted souls
who gather
and share your life's insights here.
I wish us all a happy first
of many anniversaries
and toast us all
for daring to refute
Matthew Arnold in Dover Beach.
Congrats on the one year! Happy to be here and I have enjoyed your writing immensely!
Love your writing, Matt. Am sorry that I missed your earlier reporting, but when JVL said 'subscribe' to one of the best writers and humans he knew, I decided to do it. You are a breath of fresh air (sorry, but the cliche fits!).
Glad to be here to see the first of what will hopefully be many. My son, having grown up hearing me marvel at your literary exploits back in the Weekly Standard days, alerted me to the existence of Slack Tide, so your talent is one of the increasingly rare ones that spans generations (right up there with the Kardashians or Wayne Newton). After all, what generation wouldn’t like to have a backstage perspective of the Christian professional wrestling world?
Has it been a year already? Time flies when you’re amusing/enlightening/entertaining me, Matt. Glad to have found you, and here’s hoping the news improves over the next 12 months.
Sounds silly but I always forget to listen to music. Ahhhh, Bonus Track never disappoints and always triggers some sort of musical journey for me. Thank you, Matt. Happy Birthday Slack Tide.
Happy anniversary to you and your wonderful writing. This afternoon we are celebrating four family members’ October birthdays with a Lasagna, a garden fresh salad with homemade blue cheese dressing, garlic bread made with fresh garlic and a carrot cake made with carrots from the neighbors’s garden. We ranch folks know how to eat! I will raise my glass of wine to celebrate you, as well. I think you were my first Substack subscription and I still get a kick out of you actually responding to my comments. Just as if I matter! You and Walter Kirn are my favorites. I so appreciate all the wonderful kind and considerate commenters you have cultivated. So, congratulations to all of us who get to read your stories.
Very excellent vanity project! God willing, I look forward to reading Slack Tide's 50th Anniversary publication. In 49 years I'll send Mr. Sip-sip bourbon to celebrate 50 years of fine writing achievements. Good bourbon for ML, on the porch with Solomon IV.
Maybe you could crowdsource your mission statement, put it on your masthead, and change it every month. Here is my entry: “Clever writing that makes you think at a price you’ll like!” (I wanted to suggest “What me worry?”, but that was grabbed long before we all started to worry about everything all the time.) Congratulations and thank you Matt.
Happy Birthday ST; my favorite thing is thinking about the musical pairing when I’m reading the script. I used to dream about being the person who picks the songs for movies. Turns out you’ve got a better chance of getting the director’s job. Maybe I need to substack. Always love your musical selections.
Just finding time to read this, and look! Already 104 comments! We are a vociferous bunch, aren’t we (especially that M. Trosino fellow with his indefatigable fingers).
So much has changed. Most magazines have gone tits up (crude, I know, but such a great expression). But can you imagine reading Time or Newsweek now?
I still read paper newspapers, because that’s still the best way to read the daily news (the discovery element of flipping pages cannot be replicated through scrolling on a screen), but I subscribe to the all the digital versions, too, to send articles to friends and to look up things I missed — the best of both worlds.
But what’s best about this new world of ours is stuff like this little substack of ours. I can’t remember how I first came across you (that was a bathtub of bourbon and three billion brain cells ago), but my life has been richer for it. In what other world can the writer come out from behind his computer and talk to us directly (and interrupt us while we’re talking amongst ourselves)?
So congratulations, Matt, and happy anniversary. I hope this has been more satisfying than writing for the Weekly Standard — and I hope you’re making enough scratch from our bargain subscriptions that your wife doesn’t make you go out and get a real job.
You are wrong, wrong, wrong about not having a Mission statement!
I wanted to send you my Chart-A-Vision with over a trillion possible mission statements. It takes only 4 seconds to come up with a brilliant one.
But I can't attach it!
Think about this little cosmic twist: I PAID for a subscription to be able to GIVE you a gift, but now I can't because there is no paper CLIP thingie.
Sometimes I feel like you are in my head, or (worse? 😳) a brother from another mother. Thank you for the great reads, viewpoints, laugh and head shakes. Most of all, congrats on your 1 yr annie! We wish you many returns Master Slacktider!