Sunday is a good day to relax, reflect and read. Although every day is a good day to read. Today we highlight someone living the dream of many of us writers. Another visit to the Stoics Lair with Ryan Holiday, talking about character. The transition from the highest character to the Pink Apocalypse is messy; there is no other way to make that transition. We follow nostalgia with nostalgia and finish up Reelin’ In The Years - Cheers!

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John Grisham wrote a book a few years ago called Camino Island about a bookstore owner named Bruce Cable in a sleepy beach town in Florida. The book is filled with all the intelligent mystery Grisham is well known for, it's a slight departure from his legal thrillers, but it keeps with all the page-turner elements of a great Grisham story. One of the best parts for any practicing writer is the backdrop of a bookstore owner. Grisham gets into some of the details of the publishing world and what it's like day to day to run a bookstore. The three retail businesses I always wanted to start were; a neighborhood bar, a record store, and a bookstore. These were all my loves as a young entrepreneur. Unfortunately, for all three of those dreams, I understood accounting in the early days, and those businesses are heavy on hours and light on fiscal stability. And so the dream lives on.

What didn't work for some of us was the active dream of others. NYT highlights Ms. Simona Blat, who recently rented out retail space in Brooklyn and the apartment directly above it. Ms. Blat is a writer and a teacher and is now a bookstore owner/operator. The inspiring story is available online, the bookstore is called Blackspring Books, and you can support that online too. Bookstores are keeping the dream alive for many of us aspiring writers.

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There are several speeches by President Theodore Roosevelt about the arena and how to stand your ground despite the actions of others, especially when others criticize without the experience of action. Roosevelt was influenced by the Stoics, and in a recent email by Ryan Holiday of Daily Stoic, he writes the following:

It’s one thing to strive to be a good person; it's another thing to do it on a high level, refusing to play down or respond to the level of others who do not wish to be good people. Anti-heroes are only half of that equation; when they need to, they will fight as dirty as the evil they face. To be in the ring with a dirty fighter and continue to hold to the values and good character for your own sake is rare these days. Staying in the ring to take the punishment transcends this current place and time.

We planned to refrain from writing anything about the upcoming Oppenheimer and Barbie movies; too much has been written about it as it is. The collective user-generated concept of seeing both is a highlight; crazy people with a 7-second attention span thinking they can sit in a movie theater for 5-plus hours is a story in and of itself.

The NYT brings you a weird quiz to help you decide which movie to see. The only thing the quiz did for us is reinforce the “see it on streaming” notion we already had. The dream lives on for others. 

We also added this because the headline had to be used, and if not for this highlight, we would have to start another punk rock band to use the name Pink Apocalypse! Here’s what Midjourney thinks of our idea!

If you grew up in the 80s, you might remember a radio program called Reelin’ In The Years, hosted by George Taylor Morris. The show was a deep-cut album radio show. We remember it from Saturday mornings and hearing it at the various restaurants we worked at in our teenage years. The radio program's theme song was by Steely Dan, a perfect fit for the type of albums Morris discussed on his show.

A great tune for a sweet and spicy Sunday newsletter.

Click on the Apple Music image to listen to the song on Apple Music or on the Spotify Image to listen to Spotify.

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Thank you for spending a few minutes with us. Here’s one for the road!

With A Shout newsletter is written by Johnny Christian with the support of a thousand idea bits and the help of many people.

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