We're so back

Welcome to Out in Left's Euro era

The Seine at Île Saint-Louis, Paris.

Out in Left is back, for I, the founder, editor, sole contributor, and business manager of this newsletter, have settled in Paris. Since an old fraternity brother asked: Yes, the one in France, not Texas.

What is Out in Left doing in France?

I’ve enrolled in the MFA in creative writing at The American University of Paris. I pronounce ‘The’ like I’m introducing myself as the starting left tackle on Monday Night Football.

I’ve been telling people that I’m retired from politics. For seven years I worked in various roles in the political scene in San Diego. I needed a break, and I love Europe, although I expect my retirement to be like those of Michael Jordan’s.

For now, I’m focusing entirely on writing.

Walking in America: Leaving San Diego edition

What’s changing about Out in Left?

Thematically, nothing. Out in Left will always be tethered to the intersection of sports and politics.

But I’m going to lean into my perspective—an American writer in Europe, or, as one writer called himself, an innocent abroad. I want to consume it all and report back, as Twain did in 1869.

(I did, in fact, just compare myself to Mark Twain. Hemingway, that dour scribe, has no purchase here.)

This means I’m going to widen the aperture, so to speak, and I intend on posting more frequently now that I don’t work. For each post I ask myself, “Why should Americans care about [insert European topic]?” or, conversely, “Why should Europeans care about [insert latest dumb thing that Trump or his cronies did]?

Can you give me examples?

The Trump administration stopped work on a $4 billion almost-completed renewable en—

No, of Out in Left’s new content.

Ah. The first two pieces of the Out in Left Euro era will be:

• Why America should embrace Oasis on its reunion tour (preview: the band is an antidote to postmodernism); and

• What I learned about the Gaelic sport hurling while watching it in an Irish pub in Prague.

How can I support Out in Left Euro edition?

In descending order:

1. Become a paid subscriber. I am a student once again, and my writing is worth it. (The paywall is also back up on posts older than 30 days, and it may go up for some new posts as the newsletter evolves.)

2. Become a free subscriber.

3. Share Out in Left with people in your life. Just make sure they’re smart and cool.

Otherwise, it’s back to regularly scheduled programming.