If you didn’t read this week’s post “To Bee or Not to Bee” I will read it to you, dramatically and enthusiastically, below. 👇
Reading commences as soon as you hit play. Enjoy!
Notes from the Captain
Soliloques vs. solilobees. Who wins? We all do!
Whether you’ve been waxing lyrical with a skull in a graveyard or pondering choices in a nunnery, I think we can all agree that this week’s post—a drone bee’s plea to a Queen(z)—was some quality pondering the meaning of life.
Fun fact: All worker bees are gals.
Ever funner fact: Bees can do mathematics. Which was the inspiration for this week’s post (which you should go read) and is explained in the Ze Frank video.
Another fun fact: Bees can’t read. Our dominance remains intact. (I mean, I’m not sure if they’ve done any studies on that.)
That is all. I’m in a hotel this morning with shocking—and I mean SHOCKING—internet and absolutely zero phone signal, feeling pretty chuffed with myself in that I actually had the foresight to upload todays incredible video (seriously, the puns I make are top shelf) before I left home yesterday. You’re welcome!
To compensate for the terrible connection, I am typing this while admiring this view.
This hotel is garbage, but I decided that riding over Highway 17 past midnight on my motorcycle last night was a bad idea and booked this so I wouldn’t have to. The 17 is bad in daylight, and my headlight BLOWS on Jneenja (the name of my motorcycle. Yes. I name everything).
I went and saw Idles last night at the Fox in Oakland, hence the hotel, and I came out of that feeling like I’d just had a religious experience. If you get a chance to go see the, do not hesitate. DO NOT DELAY!
Wrapping this up now. The coffee is what you expect. It is a beautiful day to ride my moto back to Santa Cruz. Contemplating a PCH run down from Half Moon Bay rather than tackling the 17. Perhaps I'll see some whales off shore?
Not a lot of links this week, primarily because I’m typing this on my iPhone and the substack interface won’t let me. Also, did I mention the WiFi at this hotel? I might add some links I had lined up later, but they’re not critical to the enjoyment of this video (above). The Ze Frank bee-math video was this week’s inspo anyway, and that’s really all you need.
See you on the boat, crew.
Your Captain, Janeen 🫡
Thangs from this episode…
👩✈️ Bee Mathematicians
I love that they'll stop and play with balls. Bees have their priorities straight.
👩✈️ Hamlet To Be or Not
And here's the full soliloquy from Hamlet. Act III. I was surprised that I could recite what I remembered from high school and movie watching all the way up to the mortal coil bit. Thanks, Australian public school education!
🎓
Speech: “To be, or not to be, that is the question”
BY WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE
(from Hamlet, spoken by Hamlet)
To be, or not to be, that is the question:
Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer
The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune,
Or to take arms against a sea of troubles
And by opposing end them. To die—to sleep,
No more; and by a sleep to say we end
The heart-ache and the thousand natural shocks
That flesh is heir to: 'tis a consummation
Devoutly to be wish'd. To die, to sleep;
To sleep, perchance to dream—ay, there's the rub:
For in that sleep of death what dreams may come,
When we have shuffled off this mortal coil,
Must give us pause—there's the respect
That makes calamity of so long life.
For who would bear the whips and scorns of time,
Th'oppressor's wrong, the proud man's contumely,
The pangs of dispriz'd love, the law's delay,
The insolence of office, and the spurns
That patient merit of th'unworthy takes,
When he himself might his quietus make
With a bare bodkin? Who would fardels bear,
To grunt and sweat under a weary life,
But that the dread of something after death,
The undiscovere'd country, from whose bourn
No traveller returns, puzzles the will,
And makes us rather bear those ills we have
Than fly to others that we know not of?
Thus conscience doth make cowards of us all,
And thus the native hue of resolution
Is sicklied o'er with the pale cast of thought,
And enterprises of great pith and moment
With this regard their currents turn awry
And lose the name of action.
Thanks for listening/watching and sharing this week. If you want to chat about any of the concepts in this week’s post—or just in general—feel free to leave a comment for the Captain (it me.)
Do. Make. Be.
Ask for help if you need it.
I’ll see you out there.
🫡
Shameless Podcast Plug
Listen to audio versions of early issues of The Stream on my podcast, Field of Streams, available on 👉 all major podcasting platforms 👈
Here’s Apple
Behind the Streams, Ep. 54: "Bee"