Advice You Don't Want
Issue 95
Greetings, loved ones, friends, and complete strangers. There’s no place I’d rather be than right here with you. I hope the feeling is mutual.
I deleted Instagram from my phone today. I do this every half-year or so to remind myself who I am without the input—too many people telling me what to do, what to buy, and how to feel. Your vacations are well-deserved. I’ll catch the next round. It's break time. I’ll be back eventually.
Oh, the irony!
As I write to you, contributing to your noise—with product recos and advice—I complain of the incessant input I wish to hush. Guilty. Please, forgive me.
Now, come along…
A Carry-All for All Your Things
You don’t need another bag. Neither do I.
What we need is one bag that does the job of most bags. For that, there is no better, no more classic carry-all than the L.L. Bean Boat and Tote (I like the zip top).
Mine is the extra large with long handles, which I use as a carry-on, weekender, for the beach, pool, and, if I went to the farmer’s market, the farmer’s market.
The price is right. The customizations are right. And it’s made in the good ol’ USA. What more could you ask?
PS: I’m also a big fan of Baggu, but nothing compares to the universality of the Boat and Tote.
Darling, You Scent Me
Incense adds a little something extra to any occasion—puts a pep in the step. A waft of yum from a smokey stick makes you feel like you’re smoking a cigarette without having to smoke one. My recent scent is Piñon. Light up, and enjoy!
Beats Me
When I want to concentrate, I listen to Binaural Beats on Spotify. Before you get excited, it’s not good at all. It’s disappointing and yet works just well enough to recommend.
The frequency of the “music” helps me focus and is particularly good for those with ADHD. I put music in quotes because it’s not quite music, though you’ll wish it were.
By the way, binaural means heard in two ears. Before I broke down the word— bin=two, aural=hearing—it was a mess of letters with no meaning. I couldn’t spell it either.
For another focus playlist, try this one from my friend T-Bone. It’s more music than binaural beats.
Q&A, AMA, T&A
Would you like some advice—a nudge forward? If you share something you're struggling with or curious about, I may be able to help.
Hit reply and ask. I'll share my two cents in next week's newsletter, and you will remain anonymous. Alternatively, ask me something about me—something you're curious about—and I'll share it next week (but won’t remain anonymous).
If my experience on earth can help your experience, we both win. The same goes for the other way around. Help helps.
Got Time for a Hot Tip?
Just because there are dozens of ways to message people doesn’t mean you need to engage with them all. Every app and its in-app DM feature doesn’t deserve your time.
Consider texts and emails, Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, Threads, Substack, and on and on—engage with all of them, and you’ll be fresh out of time in no time.
Whether each platform has a purpose isn’t important. The common thread is that they take time from your life. Temp check who controls this special currency. The answer ought to be you, not them.
It’s Crunch Time
These rice crackers are fabulous. That’s all.
Photo of the Week
Roo loves Emma, which isn’t obvious in this photo.
New subscriber and (mimicking your inimitable light touch) I can't recall how I happened upon you. But wow, it a world of too-much-content (and platforms, you're dead right), I'm early hooked... What about this: as you move between projects (writerly, research maybe towards writerly, fiction, tv series storytelling, culinary, familial, domestic more generally, *how do you think about and how would you describe* the movement you make (or any of us makes) between, the time allotted, the shifting priorisations, etc?
“A waft of yum from a smokey stick makes you feel like you’re smoking a cigarette without having to smoke one. My recent scent is Piñon. Light up, and enjoy!”
Love this!