A Change Will Do Us Good?
Newsletter + On This Day
Five days post-election, I remain bewildered, confused, and pissed off by the results.
“Orange Man Bad” might not have been the most effective—or smartest—campaign strategy, but let me be very, very clear: ORANGE MAN STILL BAD! Very, very bad.
But—regardless of who you voted for—you likely already know that.
It’s so easy to get bogged down in all the finger-pointing and all the “coulda, shoulda, wouldas” that I’ve been doing my best to avoid the “news” this week.
So rather than obsess over things I can’t change, I’ve shifted my focus to things more fun and productive. Like upgrading my creative tools. And my perspective.
Today, my new computer arrives, and with it, a fresh start for how I create and curate. I’m also working on becoming a better communicator, both in real life and online.
Over the past week, I've had plenty of "cussing and discussing" sessions with a close friend whose political views don’t always align with mine.
Our conversations have been eye-opening—mostly because, despite our differences, we agree on much more than we disagree. It’s a reminder that political views are often more nuanced than the two-sided battlefield scene the media loves to paint.
Finding common ground shouldn’t feel so revolutionary, but here we are. Our “tough love” conversations have reminded me that embracing change can lead to welcome and unexpected breakthroughs. A few headaches and heartbreaks too.
Speaking of heartbreaks, a couple of years ago, I broke up with Adobe, the maker of Photoshop and Creative Cloud. For me, the apps had become too buggy and crash-prone to justify the monthly bill. So, after years as a loyal Adobe fanboy, I canceled my subscription and started exploring alternatives.
Adobe has built—and killed—some incredible tools over the years. In its bid to rule the creative app universe, Adobe lost its way for me. So I'm always on the hunt for new apps, tools, and toys that give me more creativity, flexibility, and even joy.
I’ve been using a mix of freemium, one-time purchase, and open-source options—including Affinity Photo, Canva, and CapCut—to do what I once relied on Photoshop and Premiere to do. Starting this week, I’m going to be testing out Photomator and Pixelmator Pro. Both by a small company Apple is in the process of acquiring.
The newer programs might not always have the same features, but they have plenty of bells and whistles. More than I need or want.
Like politics, my approach to tech and tools is becoming less about brand loyalty and more about the creative freedom it allows and inspires.
While change is often challenging, overwhelming, and uncomfortable, it’s necessary.
Just because things have always been a certain way doesn’t mean they should stay that way. The tech upgrades and new creative tools are exciting and fun.
But for me, the real upgrade is connecting with each other more genuinely, finding common ground in a world that seems determined to divide us, and seeing beyond the binary bullshit and debates to realize we’re all better together.
Maybe, just maybe, a change really will do us all some good.
Thanks for reading!
Clint
NEWS + VIEWS
I Edited A Photo In Every Program (Harrison Tong) 📺 👨💻
Pixelmator Pro Masterclass - Part 1 (Joseph Slinker) 📺 👨💻
Photomator > Pixelmator Pro for Raw Editing (Take Better Photos) 📺 👨💻
Cenk Uygur Fires Back At The Vanguard (The Vanguard) 📺 🎤
ON THIS DAY = NOVEMBER 10
BIRTHDAYS
1483 – Martin Luther = German monk and leader of the Protestant Reformation
1879 = Patrick Pearse = Irish teacher, barrister, writer, and activist 🌈
1901 = Lisette Model = Austrian-born American photographer 🌈
1911 = Harry Andrews = English actor 🌈
1913 = James Broughton = American poet and poetic filmmaker 🌈
1924 = Phyllis Lyon = American activist and Daughters of Bilitis co-founder 🌈
1928 = Ennio Morricone = Italian composer and conductor
1944 = Tim Rice = English lyricist and author
1945 = Terence Davies = English actor, director, and screenwriter 🌈
1955 = Roland Emmerich, German filmmaker 🌈
1957 = Nigel Evans = Welsh politician and Shadow Secretary of State for Wales 🌈
1959 = Mackenzie Phillips = American actress
1963 = Adam Ebbin = American politician 🌈
1969 = Ellen Pompeo = American actress
1977 = Brittany Murphy = American actress and singer
1978 = Diplo = American DJ, songwriter, and producer
1982 = Heather Matarazzo = American actress 🌈
1983 = Miranda Lambert = American singer-songwriter
1984 = Lou Ferrigno Jr. = American actor
1989 = Taron Egerton = Welsh actor
CELEBRATIONS
EVENTS
1775 = The United States Marine Corps is founded.
1885 = The world's first motorcycle—the Daimler Reitwagen—is unveiled.
1928 = The New York Times reported that forty distinguished witnesses, mostly authors, appeared in a London court to testify in favor of Radclyffe Hall’s novel The Well of Loneliness. The judge refused to hear any of them.
1960 = The uncensored version of D. H. Lawrence's Lady Chatterley’s Lover finally goes on sale in the UK after a jury finds publisher Penguin Books not guilty in an obscenity trial.
1969 = Sesame Street premiered on NET (the precursor to PBS).
1970 = The Stanford Gay Students Union was formed. It was the second Stanford organization for gay students previous organization, the Student Homophile League, was short lived.
1984 = Chris Smith came out and became the first openly gay member of the UK Parliament.
1989 = Germans begin to tear down the Berlin Wall.
PHOTO + QUOTE OF THE DAY
I'm happy to report that my inner child is still ageless.
James Broughton
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Congrats on being able to find common ground. It's easier said than done. Most of us are taught (very subtly) that the US is like Switzerland: If you look at each language, roughly half are Roman Catholic and half Protestant. If you look at religion, the languages are distributed in the same proportions as through the country as a whole. Therefore we all can get get along... cuz Merica.
Reality is for at least the past 30 years we've been much more Belgium: Most of the French speakers are Catholic and most of the Catholics speak French. Most Dutch speakers are Protestant and most Protestants speak Dutch.
If you ask a person his opinion about two or three issues, you can successfully predict his stance on a half dozen others at a rate way above statistical significance.
I.e., the states that went to Harris, the states with the highest Covid vaccine uptake, the highest mask use, states with marriage equality before it became federal law, pro-choice states etc., etc., ad nauseum are pretty much the same states.
I remember reading somewhere that the US has more of these parallel social cleavages than any other developed country.
So congrats again on your success. I agree we have to accept change and move on.
Well voiced Clint and Tom, tis a good job I only need simple IT needs now I'm retired. Previously my IT needs were met by my employer (Government 😮) and the IT department and simple Android devices are all I need these days. Cheers DougT 🇫🇴