What we’re reading, listening to and thinking about this month.

Todd R.: I’m going to start reading the book Today, We Die A Little, the biography of Emil Zatopek. Zatopek was not only the greatest long-distance runner of all time, but also a freedom fighter. Maggie and I loved “City on a Hill.” Now, we’re looking for our next binge-worthy show. Recommendations will be taken. And Café Caribe at the State Fair has live music, lobster rolls and Lift Bridge Mango Blonde beer, but you need to get there before Labor Day.  

Alyssa: Ok, hang with me on this one for a minute. My “out there” read for August was The Case Against Reality by Donald Hoffman, which argues that our perceptions of what we observe as space, time and matter are not true, but rather a symbolic representation of what we’ve evolved to understand about the world order to survive as a species. The author argues that Einstein’s Theory of Relativity and spacetime can no longer be foundational in physics because this perception-based understanding of the universe is an inadequate paradigm for understanding how things really work at the atomic level. Instead, he says, scientists should recognize that there is no reality that does not depend on consciousness, and that until we can mathematically define consciousness, we may never be able to understand and explain the ultimate nature of reality. Phew!  

Todd S.: August has been all about squeezing in as much family activity as possible before school starts, including a Twins game, a trip to the Minnesota Zoo and, of course, the State Fair.

Rich: I’m about a third of the way through Homo Deus: A Brief History of Tomorrow – a fascinating read. Golf is ongoing, of course. I’ve also been spending quite a bit of time with my kids. My daughter Katie and her fiancé Nick set a wedding date, and next month, my wife and I are going to New York to visit our daughter Emma and our son David. 

Sarah: I’ll start with the most obvious – Lover, Taylor Swift’s new album, has been on repeat since they day it dropped. It’s a great album, don’t @ me. Just because “The Bachelorette” is over doesn’t mean I’m quitting Bachelor Nation until January. “Bachelor in Paradise” is the best show in the franchise in my opinion, and the drama is out in full force this season. When I wasn’t watching love triangles play out on Playa Escondida, I was catching up on season 5 of “Jane the Virgin.”

Anna: I read the vivid, poetic memoir Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson in one evening – I could not put it down. I also traveled to Colorado for the first time. I’m still not over the breathtaking mountain views, or the soreness from horseback riding, whitewater rafting and rock climbing.