#00: a sample edition of the filtered
what's worth reading
Dear reader,
There’s no expiration date on a good essay. That’s why each week, I share five pieces from across Substack that aren’t chasing headlines — essays with depth and staying power, chosen to surprise you, linger with you, or spark a new idea. Think of it as your shortcut to standout reading, minus the overwhelm.
This sample edition includes a blueprint for lifelong self-education through books, a quirky meditation discovered in a car wash, a defense of laughter as subversive survival, a sharp-eyed critique of therapy-speak, and the hard-won wisdom of a 90-year-old psychologist.
Warmly,
Lou Blaser
Resident Curator
A Philosophy of Self Education
| Beyond The Bookshelf | December 17, 2024A case for turning your bookshelf into a lifelong education program. From Homer to Baldwin, the writer argues that a curated reading plan can transform scattered book choices into an intentional course of study, pairing classics and contemporary works to join the “great conversation” across centuries. (1600 words)
What’s This, a Door?
Hormeze | Hormeze | July 30, 2025
A thoughtful meditation on humor as perception rather than invention. Blending philosophy, neuroscience, and stand-up lore, it shows how laughter bridges grief and joy, promotes learning, and affirms life even in the worst of times. Norm Macdonald, the comedian’s comedian, becomes a guide to seeing the world as a relentless series of delightful surprises. (1600 words)
Against Therapy Speak
Bentham’s Bulldog | Bentham’s Newsletter | July 11, 2025
Why does every awkward interaction now get labeled as gaslighting, trauma, or a boundary violation? In this funny but pointed essay, a Gen-Z writer argues that therapy-speak has escaped the therapist’s office and now distort ordinary disagreements, exaggerate minor woes, and excuse selfishness, with consequences for how a generation interprets life itself. (1700 words)
I’m 90 Now
Katharine Esty | Aging Well With Katharine Esty | January 26, 2025
Clear-eyed reflections from a 90-year-old psychologist on the surprises of being one of the oldest 1% of people in the world: fewer regrets, more self-compassion, a simpler kind of doing, and an unexpected sense of contentment. Loss is constant, but so is gratitude. “Be who you are and do what you can.” (1150 words)
Car Wash Therapy
| The Tea Library | August 5, 2025Lightly comic ode to the car wash as an unlikely haven for mental rest. What began as a battle against bird droppings turns into a two-minute, rainbow-suds meditation, complete with teenage-TV musings and occasional contraband custard. Proof that peace of mind sometimes comes with tire rollers and a wax cycle. (660 words)
🛎 The Last Bell
“Reading gives us a place to go when we have to stay where we are.”
— Mason Cooley
What a great idea, Lou! This is a much-needed curation of the flood of good reads on Substack--it's brilliant.
I love this idea! I am so overwhelmed by what comes into my inbox from Substack that I end up not looking at any of it. (Except yours, of course, Lou!). Thank you for "the filter"