> ## Content Index
> Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.drewshannon.net/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further.

# Modest Operations | Newsletter Volume 29
- URL: https://www.drewshannon.net/modest-operations-newsletter-volume-29/
- Published: 2019-06-25T17:58:26.000Z
- Updated: 2026-09-13T22:24:47.000Z
- Description: Modest Operations email newsletter Volume 29 (June 25, 2019).
- Author: Drew Shannon
- Tags: gq style, outside magazine, the new yorker, david schultz, modest operations, newsletter, nick paumgarten, thom bettrridge, wes siler, #import-mailchimp-2026-09-13

With the recent announcement of [Stadia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Google%5FStadia?ref=drewshannon.net), as well as my large-and-growing list of monthly cloud-based subscriptions (Spotify, 1Password, Asana, Squarespace, Backblaze, Google Drive, and others), I've recently been thinking a lot about the diminished importance of computing hardware.

I think it's been obvious for awhile that we're now many years into the generation of having near-infinite power & information in our pockets, but more than ever, at least in my own professional life, personal hardware is doing less and less of the heavy lifting, while a solid internet connection is all I need to do a vast majority of my work.

**This Week's Links** *A list of things I've been reading & thinking about.*\* "This isn’t a golf tournament. It’s a cultural event where the Southern United States has its chest stuck out and is saying come down and visit" - [Inside the Cultish Dreamworld of Augusta National (Nick Paumgarten for *The New Yorker*)](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2019/06/24/inside-the-cultish-dreamworld-of-augusta-national?ref=drewshannon.net) \* "Like many major figures from the heyday of action sports, Masekela is still coming to grips with the fact that his world has lost much of its cultural and commercial cachet" - [The Unlikely Preacher of Action Sports (David Schultz for *Outside Magazine*)](https://www.outsideonline.com/2380521/unlikely-preacher-action-sports-sal-masekela?ref=drewshannon.net) \* "What makes him a good dog in people’s minds isn’t the product of some genetic lottery—it’s not luck. What they’re seeing is the product of hard work, good leadership, and unwavering devotion. I say this not to discourage you but to illustrate that anyone can do this with any dog. There is no such thing as a good dog, only a good dog owner." - [There's No Such Thing as a Good Dog (Wes Siler for *Outside Magazine*)](https://www.outsideonline.com/2177341/theres-no-such-thing-good-dog?ref=drewshannon.net) \* "I've never heard Virgil say a negative thing in my whole life. What I knew about creativity was saying no to things, but he's on the opposite flip. It's like when Virgil convinced me to be a DJ—I still don't know how to use a mixer. I said to Virgil, 'I don't know how to DJ,' and he said, 'It doesn't matter. Let's just go have some fun.'" - [The Oral History of Virgil Abloh (Thom Bettrridge for *GQ Style*)](https://www.gq.com/story/virgil-abloh-cover-story-spring-2019?ref=drewshannon.net) \* "And maybe some people will take a pause and reflect on how toxic and menacing our online discourse has become, about how quick we are to believe the worst of each other, and think about the human cost of demonizing and doxxing people, the way that Project Veritas has done to me." - [This is not how I expected Monday to go! (Jen Gennai for *Medium)*](https://medium.com/@gennai.jen/this-is-not-how-i-expected-monday-to-go-e92771c7aa82?ref=drewshannon.net)