Bob's Almanack

I trust myself. I have faith in myself.

~ Robert

September campaign

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Note from Bob

This week considers the words we repeat and the choices that follow. These Mantras ask what we trust, what we love, and who we are working to become. Read one, share one, and keep the sentence that helps you take deliberate action.

New from Outside In Print

Golden sunrise lights a tidal marsh crossed by an empty wooden boardwalk, with reflective water, green cordgrass, and distant pines beneath a clear sky.

Mantra #6: Presence

Here, Together, Alone

A golden sun rises above a river bending in a broad S through a green meadow, with a split-trunk sycamore on one bank and distant blue hills beyond.

Mantra #5: Becoming

Change Without Losing the Self

Two separate paths curve through a sunlit riverside meadow beneath the same golden sunrise.

Mantra #4: Love

Two Without Becoming One

Golden sunrise lights an empty riverside path curving beneath sycamores toward a wooden footbridge, calm water, and distant blue hills.

Mantra #3: Faith

Belief Beyond Circumstance

This Week's Virtue

Resolution

Resolution turns spoken intention into conduct. Decide what belongs to you, then do it without theater or delay. Keep the promise small enough to carry and firm enough to count. A practiced sentence can steady the mind, but only the next chosen act gives it weight. Resolve, perform, correct, and begin again tomorrow.

One Number

162,000

U.S. nonfarm payroll employment increased by 162,000 in August. The unemployment rate held at 4.1 percent. source

One Document

DHS Contracts: Reported Potential Cost Avoidance from Terminations Will Not Fully Materialize

U.S. Government Accountability Office, 2026-09-03

GAO found that DHS deobligated more than $92 million after terminating 438 contracts and is unlikely to realize most of the $10.5 billion in potential cost avoidance it reported. source

Results

Coco Gauff advanced to the third round of the U.S. Open on September 3 with a 6–4, 7–6(5) win over Paula Badosa. source

Records

Angel Reese recorded her 29th double-double of the season, setting a WNBA single-season record through games played August 30. source

Final Bows

Gael Monfils played his final Grand Slam match on September 3, losing 6–3, 6–4, 6–3 to Learner Tien at the U.S. Open. source

Obituaries

Wendell Berry, the Kentucky writer and farmer, died at home August 31 at 92. source

Early to bed and early to rise, makes a man healthy wealthy and wise.

~ Poor Richard

Worth Reprinting

How Jack Stratton Hacked the Music Industry with Funk, Friends, and Irresistible Groove

The Man Behind Vulfpeck, the Funk Collective That Outsmarted the System

Jack Stratton helped build Vulfpeck without a major label or manager. The band used sharp music, a close team, and odd ideas to reach a huge audience. We are bringing this story back as Bob's Almanack begins its own drive to grow. It shows how artists can keep control of their work while building something people want to join.

I do the things that I say I’m going to do.

~ Robert