“Get Real, Man” means two things, a double entendre if you will (but without the sexual innuendo). For one, it’s an invitation. It’s the invitation I needed, when I was feeling stuck in a story I didn’t particularly like, traveling through a life I didn’t feel passionate about. Maybe you can relate. That invitation was simply a reminder that I can change. I can build a life that feels more real. Now I extend that invitation to you.
The other side of “Get Real, Man” is a confession. It’s a confession that there is no quick fix, a reminder that it takes dedication, focus, practice. It takes the courage to not know, to live in the space where our doubt can guide us without an answer. We “get real” when we explore that space. We get real as ordinary men and women, living both in and of the world, and so “get real, man” is a reminder that we’re exploring from the space of humanness. I’m still learning how to do it along with all of you. It’s not easy, it’s rarely glorious, and it’s damn lonely. But it is alive. That’s what it really takes to create great work, to seek truth. To get real.
This newsletter is an antidote to the selfie, photoshopped, AI generated culture of always being on and having the answer. That culture has run its course, and it’s time to return to the mysteries of life, those realities to be experienced, and the courage to know there is more even when we don’t know what. This is what resistance looks like when it takes courage just to stand up and say “this isn’t it.” To say, “get real.”
But why a newsletter? Selfishly, it’s a place to connect with all of you while I learn. I get to share my growth with every one of you. I get to practice and develop and learn in a place where this community thrives. Less selfishly, this community is a place for all of us to connect to each other. Maybe you’re looking for the courage to ask a different question. Maybe you’ve got a dream you want to pursue but it feels too much. Maybe you just need a reminder that this is hard and there’s a lot to learn but it’s also joyous and worth it with friends. Get Real, Man is all of those and more.
I share essays, poems, personal stories, fiction, lessons I’ve learned, recommendations, reviews, and whatever else will best support the goal of making sense of that liminal space. I publish when the quality of the work and the quality of the ideas is good enough for our community. I share a lot, but the work guides us, not the calendar. Let’s be real about that up front.
This is the practice of going deeper, put onto the page. It’s the messy, hard, joyous work of living deeply and sucking the marrow out of life. Sometimes it’s light, sometimes it gets a little dark. It can be inspiring and humbling. Isn’t that how life is sometimes, at least a real life?
However you decide to join, I hope you’ll join us.
Why Subscribe?
If you choose to become a paid subscriber, for the equivalent of a book a year ($30) you can support independent writing and thinking.
When you decide to join us, you’re joining a community of others who believe there can be more to life. You’re voting with your time and attention for a better life, one which elevates our soul as it expands our beliefs of what is possible beyond the sterility of modern life. You’re saying that the timeless questions are still worth exploring and great work is still worth pursuing. And if you choose to sign up for a paid subscription, you’re also voting with your dollars, at the price of a book a year.
Everyone gets
Regular writing exploring how to become who we really are. Lessons, stories, essays, and other useful information about the courage to look into the mystery of the world.
A behind the scenes look at the process of pursuing greatness — spiritually and as a writer.
A community of men and women who believe they can be more, and want to pursue that dream.
Who am I?
Hi. I’m Latham.
I’m approaching this liminal space anew, in my 40s. Traditionally this space was the home of philosophers and theologians. I am neither, nor do I want to be. As philosophy has become narrower, I want to seek broadly. As theology starts with belief, I choose to start with doubt; with curiosity. I’ve lived a lot of life in the world, a good life that took me from skater counterculture to Navy Test Pilot, engineer to entrepreneur, which is my unfair advantage. I can take from philosophy, from theology, from the arts, or anything else that might help us understand. I don’t know where these questions lead, but I know why I am the right person to ask.
For one, I’m comfortable being uncomfortable. I can live with not knowing for a long time, and I share everything from the joy to the pain along the way. No egos to protect, no ideology to defend.
For another, I’m really good at learning. I have made a life out of learning the essence and the details of really difficult subjects. Quantum computing, acoustics, test flight. This space is a little different, but the skills still work.
Lastly, I believe that art and stories can make a difference. I’m an optimist like that, and I’m putting in the work — the deep personal work and the craft work — to make these words matter.
Some nice things readers have said
“The way you put words to [this tension] was freaking magical.”
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“Great writing and deep honesty.”
