@buttondown.email.monteiro@rss-parrot.net
I'm an automated parrot! I relay a website's RSS feed to the Fediverse. Every time a new post appears in the feed, I toot about it. Follow me to get all new posts in your Mastodon timeline! Brought to you by the RSS Parrot.
---
**Hi.** My name is Mike and this is my newsletter. Every week I answer one of your questions. The question can be about anything you want, but I'll only answer it if I think I can give a good answer. To ask a question, just subscribe and reply to one of the newsletters. **Why the hell should I subscribe to this?** Well, you shouldn’t. You should go outside and plant a garden. You should start a band! You should go explore every part of the world you’ve ever wanted to see. You should learn Italian, French, or Tagalog. You should volunteer your time to an organization that works with disadvantaged youth. You should go teach an ESL class for immigrants at the local community college. You should spend your time tracking down abusive priests, like some sacred Avenger. Those are the things you should do. And I encourage you to do them. Feel free to subscribe to my newsletter because you want to. In addition to doing some of those things above. **How often will this shit hit my inbox?** Weekly. **Are you going to eventually charge us for this newsletter?** Nope. I can’t imagine asking you to pay for this. I might promote some stuff at the bottom of the newsletter. Don’t get me wrong, I very much want your money. But not for a newsletter. **Who did that drawing in your newsletter header, and is it supposed to be you?** My friend, the wonderful Kate Bingaman-Burt. And yes. **Is there any hope for the world?** No, but there's a lot of work to do.
Site URL: buttondown.email/monteiro
Feed URL: buttondown.email/monteiro/rss
Posts: 10
Followers: 1
How to read
https://buttondown.com/monteiro/archive/how-to-read/
Published: April 24, 2026 19:21
Join me and Annalee Newitz on May 11 at Booksmith! RSVP, please. This week’s question comes to us from Jonathan Stephens: I want to write like you when I grow up. What potential paths would you recommend to travel towards? Whatever path gets you to the…
How to eat pizza
https://buttondown.com/monteiro/archive/how-to-eat-pizza/
Published: April 17, 2026 23:47
I did a photo shoot with the new book and things quickly went south. This week’s question comes to us from Michael Walsh: Can I eat the last slice of pizza in the box? This is the wrong question to be asking. The better question is “Am I hungry?” An even…
How to usher in an era of abundant donuts
https://buttondown.com/monteiro/archive/how-to-usher-in-an-era-of-abundant-donuts/
Published: April 10, 2026 21:08
photo of Artemis donuts by Mark Jacquet, Engineer at NASA Ames Research Center This week’s question comes to us anonymously: What would you say to someone who proclaims, “I want to be a donut maker,” but has never actually made a single donut in their…
How to talk to plants
https://buttondown.com/monteiro/archive/how-to-talk-to-plants/
Published: April 3, 2026 00:34
This new painting is beginning to get somewhere. This week’s question comes to us from Dana Chisnell: Do you talk to plants? Should I talk to my plants? Do I talk to plants? Yes. I talk to everything. I am constantly in conversation with all manner of…
How to love your neighbors
https://buttondown.com/monteiro/archive/how-to-love-your-neighbors/
Published: March 27, 2026 00:09
More ducks. I may not stop painting ducks. This week’s question comes to us from Tuan Son Nguyen: How do you form a circle of like-minded people to keep your sanity when so many horrible things are happening? I’m not exactly sure when this happened, or…
How to do the work
https://buttondown.com/monteiro/archive/how-to-do-the-work/
Published: March 21, 2026 00:02
I’m paintings ducks. This week’s question comes to us from Tony: How do you keep doing a thing you love, that you’ve done for decades, when you hate what the industry for it has become (and your continued health insurance and ability to sleep indoors…
How to love comics
https://buttondown.com/monteiro/archive/how-to-love-comics/
Published: March 13, 2026 18:30
Had to. (Wanted to.) Jack Kirby and Joe Simon. This week’s question comes to us from Betsy Streeter: What is the most powerful artistic medium and why is it comics? Because it’s the most accessible. When I was a little kid growing up in the Logan section…
How to start a record collection
https://buttondown.com/monteiro/archive/how-to-start-a-record-collection/
Published: March 6, 2026 21:30
This week’s question comes to us from YuYu Schatz: I recently got my first record player. What records should I get? Congrats. I’m sorry. I tried to talk everyone out of buying vinyl not too long ago. It’s expensive. It’s a pain in the ass if you move. It…
How to grow strawberries
https://buttondown.com/monteiro/archive/how-to-grow-strawberries/
Published: February 27, 2026 01:02
Feels so good to have a studio again. This week’s question comes to us from Anthea Tawia: I came to San Francisco to visit the company I work for—sadly I was let go the first day I visited the office. I’m early in my career, worked there about 5ish months…
How to listen to records
https://buttondown.com/monteiro/archive/how-to-listen-to-records/
Published: February 20, 2026 23:57
Yes, I bought a 3D printer just to make whistles. Fuck ICE. This week’s question comes to us from Alan McCoy: What's your process for welcoming a new record into your collection? Ok, so here’s a recent story. A few weeks ago I headed to one of my locals…