Episode 243: A Sheen of Fakery (with special guest Gabe Bullard, author of "Against Convenience")

Journalist Gabe Bullard joins us to talk about his new book, Against Convenience: Embracing Friction in an Age of Endless Ease. We dig into what we trade away for ease: the Starbucks app, robotaxis, New Release Tuesdays, memories apps, and AI's "sheen of fakery" — plus Wendell Berry's rules for adopting a new tool and Gabe's chat with our friend Caroline Weaver. We’re missing Tim today because his hotel wi-fi is not working.For this episode, we recorded video, available to Patreon subscribers! If you’re a patron, head over to see our faces and visual examples of many of the things we discuss. And if you’re not a patron, join us at any level and you can see this and other supplemental content at any time!Show Notes and LinksAgainst Convenience: Embracing Friction in an Age of Endless Ease by Gabe BullardGabe Bullard1AThe Impossible ProjectWendell BerryThe Membership — Tim's Wendell Berry podcast“Why I Am Not Going to Buy a Computer” by Wendell Berry“Feminism, the Body, and the Machine” by Wendell BerryDieter Rams' ten principles for good designHalf-Told Tales by Arab StrapDon Hertzfeldt interview in SlateThe Influencing Machine by Brooke GladstoneCan Gen Z's Nostalgia Save Chain Restaurants? (New York Times)Yikes! pencilsThe Tin Drum by Günter GrassAI Fruit Love IslandMeta's Muse AI agent at Connect 2026Google's "Dear Sydney" Gemini adThe Locavore Variety StoreCW Pencil EnterpriseBookshop.orgUnderwood No. 6 typewriterBrother Charger 11 typewriterOlympia typewritersHermes Baby typewriterStrikethruLamy 2000 fountain penParker 51 fountain penFisher Space PenTombow AirPress ballpoint penEberhard Faber Mongol 482Mongol Pencil — the new relaunchSanford American NaturalsMusgrave Pencil CompanyBlackwingSteinbeck's favorite pencilsBlaisdell Calculator 600Field Notes Original KraftLouise Carmen leather notebook coverThe reporter's notebook by Gabe Bullard (Nieman Reports)Bob Slate StationerStálogy Editor's Series 365Days NotebookRepair CaféRhodia No. 38 padRhodia No. 8 padAlton Brown's Rhodia pad on Good EatsRoterfaden TaschenbegleiterMuji notebooksIra Glass, This Is How I Work (Lifehacker)Delfonics Rollbahn notebooksDavid Sedaris's fake German notebooks from Japan (Literary Hub)Kurt Vonnegut's envelope storyErasable PatreonErasable Podcast Discord inviteOur GuestGabe Bullard WebsiteYour HostsJohnny  Gamber Pencil Revolution @pencilutionAndy Welfle Woodclinched @awelfleTim Wasem @TimWasem