What's Better, Quantity or Quality?

Conor Intelligence was formed, first and foremost, to encourage me to write more via the only means my brain understands: deadlines. But now that I’ve been writing more often without the threat of missing a post, I’m going to dial back from weekly posts to monthly posts to prioritize quality over quantity.

Still, when it comes to writing, quality is almost certainly a more noble pursuit, which is why I’ve decided to dial back Conor Intelligence from weekly to monthly.

Why the change? Well, the fact of the matter is that, while I love writing about my life and the things around me, it’s not necessarily my primary goal. I’ve always been enthralled by the idea of writing fiction, and while stand up doesn’t exactly provide that outlet, writing could. So, I’ll be writing less Conor Intelligence posts, but I will continue writing plenty, I promise!

Dad tips of the week

• Learn how to braid hair - Girl dad specific, but they’re going to ask for it eventually, and if mom isn’t home, you’re going to be in trouble. 𖥈

• Be cool being cold - Even if it’s 55 degrees outside, your kid is going to want to get in the pool if it’s Memorial Day. 🥶

• Don’t buy it if you ain’t gonna build it - If you buy something that needs to be built, like a bike, don’t open it until you’re ready to spend a few hours putting it together. Just, trust me. 🚲

Don’t Call It a Comeback

The NBA and NHL conference playoffs are all at 3-1 and we know how that goes.

On Wednesday, the Edmonton Oilers, Oklahoma City Thunder, the Florida Panthers, the Indiana Pacers were all up 3-1 in their respective playoff series, which statisticians will tell you is a good lead to have. In the NHL, only 32 teams in history have come back from that deficit, while it’s even rarer in the NBA, with only 13 teams pulling it off.

It’s not impossible, though. In fact, being down 3-1 actually sounds pretty good to me, based on my own experience with the unfavorable series count. In 2013, the Blackhawks were down 3-1 to the Detroit Red Wings in the Western Conference Finals, at which point I posted on Facebook that “I wish I didn’t care about sports,” while preparing to shave my first playoff beard of adulthood. The Blackhawks would go on to beat the Red Wings and then the Bruins to hoist the Stanley Cup, and the beard remains to this day.

The best 3-1 comeback took place in 2016, and it is not LeBron’s redemption against the Golden State Warriors. Many forget that the Cubs were down 3-1 to the Indians in the World Series, when they surged back with big bats and stellar pitching to even the series for a legendary Game 7 that would go to extra innings. And we all know how that one turned out.

What I’m consuming this week

With no lightsabers, fewer flowy robes, and virtually no mention of “The Force,” Andor still had a strangle hold on my attention through every minute. The fight against galactic fascism was eerily relevant, with oppressive bureaucracy as the ever-present enemy and a slow-burn rebellion as the underdog protagonist.

If somehow you’ve lost hope that new Star Wars can be good, or worse that Star Wars was never your cup of tea in the first place, I implore you to give Andor a try with an open mind anyway. Because not only is it aggressively entertaining on a Game of Thrones-ian level, but it’s only going to get more poignant over the next few years.

Absence makes the heart grow fonder!

Monthly posts don’t mean goodbye, it just gives you more time to miss me!

Rather than battling with my mental health on a weekly basis to see if I can get a post out or just brain dumping slop for the sake of getting words on the page, I’ve decided that monthly posts are the way forward for Conor Intelligence.

I hope that doesn’t bum you out too much and that you’ll still want to be a Conor Intelligence Agent moving forward!