Leo

Well. That was a year, wasn’t it? I mean, look. <a href="https://dansinker.com/posts/2023exit/">Dan</a>’s done a better job than I could have, outlining all the reasons why I’m glad to see the back of this year’s head. By almost any measure, 2023’s been a horror: a year of bigotry, of hate, of war, and of death. I won’t miss it one bit. And at the same time, I will miss it. Because against that terrible backdrop — and without minimizing its horrors in any way, not for one single second — I’m trying to remember that there was so much about 2023 I’m grateful for. Here are a few of them. <hr /> If nothing else, this year saw the release of <a href="https://ethanmarcotte.com/wrote/you-deserve-a-tech-union-launch/">my latest book, <cite>You Deserve a Tech Union</cite></a>. I’ve never felt prouder of one of my books. <a class="footnote" href="#fn-rwd" id="fnref-fn-rwd" aria-labelledby="title-footnotes">1</a> And I’ve mentioned this before, but that book really couldn’t have happened without the support of so many wonderful people: the scores of remarkable, astonishing tech workers I interviewed for the book; my friends who offered support, feedback, and ideas; and my family. It really did take a village to write this thing. And since its release, the book has brought more wonderful things into my life. I’ve been lucky enough to attend <a href="https://ethanmarcotte.com/wrote/minetta/">the first ever conference for tech organizers</a>, and invited to try writing a couple <a href="https://ethanmarcotte.com/wrote/mail-run/">op-ed</a> <a href="https://ethanmarcotte.com/wrote/openai-oped-wbur/">pieces</a>. I don’t know what the new year will bring, but talking about the book — and about tech labor more broadly — feels right to me in a pretty significant way. I hope 2024 brings more of that. A lot more. <hr /> It’s been over a year since <a href="https://ethanmarcotte.com/wrote/post-by-post/">I left Twitter</a>. And while I do still miss it, I’ve been really happy <a href="https://follow.ethanmarcotte.com/@beep">posting over on Mastodon</a>. (<a href="https://bsky.app/profile/ethanmarcotte.bsky.social">Mostly.</a>) At the same time, I’ve been writing here more. Some twenty posts this year, even! <a class="footnote" href="#fn-data" id="fnref-fn-data" aria-labelledby="title-footnotes">2</a> Now, the lion’s share of those posts were <a href="https://ethanmarcotte.com/wrote/tag/you-deserve-a-tech-union/">related to the book</a>, but that doesn’t change the fact that it just feels good to be writing again on this little site. I’ve even been making a few small design tweaks here and there, with a few more substantial changes (hopefully) in the queue. I haven’t felt like working on <a href="https://ethanmarcotte.com/wrote/let-a-website-be-a-worry-stone/">this worry stone of mine</a> in some time. And that feels good, too. <hr /> Finally, and this is a small thing, but it’s been a banner year for reading. The book was a fairly research-heavy topic, but there wasn’t much time for pleasure reading. (Or more likely, I just didn’t have enough gas in the proverbial tank.) I’ve tucked into some great books over the last few months. This includes, but isn’t limited to: <ul> <li><a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/612711/how-infrastructure-works-by-deb-chachra/">Deb Chachra’s <cite>How Infrastructure Works</cite></a>;</li> <li><a href="https://massivebookshop.com/products/9780374610661">Joanne McNeil’s <cite>Wrong Way</cite></a>; and</li> <li>The absolutely stunning <a href="https://www.rosemarykirstein.com/the-books/"><cite>Steerswoman</cite> series by Rosemary Kirstein</a>. <a class="footnote" href="#fn-books" id="fnref-fn-books" aria-labelledby="title-footnotes">3</a></li> </ul> Honestly, it’s felt like a kind of healing. And I suppose I mean that quite literally. When I got <a href="https://ethanmarcotte.com/wrote/notes-from-a-week/">my diagnosis</a> a few years ago, reading felt like work in a way it hadn’t ever before. I’m feeling incredibly grateful my eyesight’s (mostly) healed to the point where I can work, write, walk, and, well, read. <hr /> I think that’s it, at least for now. Really, this post is just a little marker for myself: something I can anchor to the here, to right now, and have something to look back to in the future. And it’s helpful as I start to look forward. So here’s to 2024, I suppose — and to you and me, as we make our ways through it. May the new year bring us more good days than bad, and bring both of us to the people and projects we find fulfilling. Thanks, as always, for reading. I’m so glad you’re here. <hr /> <div class="footnotes flow"> <h2 class="hed-footnotes has-dash" id="title-footnotes">Footnotes</h2> <ol><li id="fn-rwd" class="footnote-item">No, not even <a href="https://abookapart.com/products/responsive-web-design">that one</a>. <a href="#fnref-fn-rwd" class="reversefootnote">↩︎</a> </li> <li id="fn-data" class="footnote-item">I’ve never been much for quantifying my years, of distilling the months down to data. The reason for that lies entirely in my weird little brain: I’m entirely too susceptible to comparing this year’s numbers to last year’s numbers, and reading every <code>numbers went up</code> as an unmitigated victory, every <code>numbers went down</code> as a crushing failure. In other words, once numbers enter the picture, my brain simply forgets that the picture is more complicated than that. So! For the sake of my mental health, I try to keep numbers out of it. <a href="#fnref-fn-data" class="reversefootnote">↩︎</a> </li> <li id="fn-books" class="footnote-item">And, y’know, rereading <a href="https://read.macmillan.com/torforge/the-locked-tomb/">The Locked Tomb series</a> a perfectly normal amount. <a href="#fnref-fn-books" class="reversefootnote">↩︎</a> </li> </ol> </div>

<hr /> This has been “<a href="https://ethanmarcotte.com/wrote/the-2023-that-was/">The 2023 that was.</a>” a post from <a href="https://ethanmarcotte.com/wrote/">Ethan’s journal.</a> <a href="mailto:listener+rss@ethanmarcotte.com?subject=Reply%20to:%20“The 2023 that was.”">Reply via email</a>