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Yes, it is an odd list. And yes, you might not find it useful. But read it. Make notes. You will find some wonderful places in NYC as a result. Even if you never plan to cry in public: New York City’s best places to cry in public, mapped
(And if you do plan to cry in public in New York, you are now all set!)
Like nutrition advice, exercise advice seems to change as often as clothing fashion changes. It can be hard to keep up, and easy to get skeptical that any advice is solid. However, if you want to keep up and are not skeptical, read this: How Smart Exercise Keeps You Younger for Longer.
My take, which is a variation of this, is simple: do a range of exercises, from cardio, to strength, to stretching to balancing. A fitness routine that includes all this is better than a fitness routine that just focuses on one or two areas. And any fitness routine is better than no fitness routine.
Might be seen here: LG brings Gram 17 laptop to Canada | IT Business
Qualities include lightness and thinness, as well as limited ability to make hardware changes. Magnesium body vs aluminum. You can read more about it at IT Business.
It’s only a matter of time before laptops reach a physical limit as to how much lighter and thinner we can make them. That time is not yet. But definitely in the next 5-7 years.
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We have tons of upscale coffee shops, and wine is more popular than ever in North America, so Eater asks what seems to be a simple question: Natural Wine Is Everywhere in America. Where Are the Wine Bars?
I say “seems” because the answer is long and fascinating for a number of reasons: economic, cultural, and gastronomical. It’s a smart piece. I highly recommend it.
Here’s a snippet of what I mean:
It’s sad to see something so ostensibly simple become another exclusive pleasure, so I keep looking for the neighborhood wine bar of my dreams — which is honestly just a cramped room with bottles of interesting, affordable wine on the wall and, like, a cheese plate? Yet this seemingly simple thing is stupidly hard to find. It’d be sort of funny that cosseted American wine bars struggle to attain the loose charm of Paris, given that France is stereotyped as the place that’s snooty, rules-bound, and tradition-obsessed, if the result wasn’t such a bummer. While yes, there are a lot of rules, France also has a more open culture of public life; you don’t need to make plans to go out to drink wine. And though wine signifies many things in French culture, an air of sophistication because you drink it is not one of them. The appeal of enjoying wine in France, at least as the kind of person who’s moved by wine but still needs bolds on the list, is that French wine culture feels so much less precious than in America.
This is a nice little tool if you want to turn a photograph into a stencil or drawing: Free Picture Stencil Maker.
If you wanted to simplify an image, this can help. For example, if you wanted to break down an image for painting or drawing, this could be really useful.
Give it a try!
Two pieces on the Canadian pipeline protests worth reflecting on are here in The Globe and Mail and here in Macleans. Obviously there has been much more written, but these seem to capture at least some of the differences.
It’s a complicated situation, to say the least, and I have no clear insight or recommendations on how to assess it. How you assess it depends on how you see the world and Canada’s place in it.
My general thoughts are we need to strongly move away from fossil fuels and all of Canada needs to strongly move towards strengthening indigenous people so they have more autonomy and better relations with and within Canada. Underlying that, my cynical and skeptical view is that there is money and power involved and nothing is as it seems because of this. So I am hoping for the best and expecting the worst and in the end I believe there will be progress however tarnished.
App Store subscriptions can add up financially if you are not careful. They are also easier to sign up for than you might think. It can be especially bad if your kids have the ability to download apps on iPhones or iPads; kids will not even be aware they are signing up for subscriptions. (Heck, that is also true of adults.)
To check on and cancel subscriptions, follow this guide: How to Cancel App Store Subscriptions – MacRumors
If this saves you any money, let me know! 🙂
If you are terrible with plants, like me, and want to get some plants regardless, then check this out: Houseplants You Can’t Kill – Dwell.
The plants are:
Relatedly, my office recent had plants added, and the plants added were from this list. So far they are doing fine. Let’s see if I (and you) have similar results.
Likely nothing. On the surface, it might seem like it will. But step back: every year some pattern emerges from the Oscar winners, and this pattern is seized on as meaning something meaningful.
The only pattern I can see as meaningful is how Netflix has been steadily gaining more and more nominations over the last few years. There is a meaningful trend. It could end any time, but I think it means that more American films will come from new organizations (e.g. Netflix, Apple, Amazon).
I thought Parasite was a great movie, and Boon Joon-ho is a great director. But look over the last 10 or 20 years and see if you can find a trend in which films are winning. If you can, I’d love to read about your analysis.
P.S. This is a good piece that got me thinking about the meaning of a film winning at the Oscars: Bong Joon-ho’s ‘Parasite’ makes Oscar history by repurposing the familiar – The Washington Post
I was aware of white noise, but I didn’t realize there is a range of noises associated with colour:
Both pink and white noise are members of an entire color family of sound including black and brown noise. Sounds are assigned these colors based on how energy is distributed over several frequencies, according to Healthline.com. White noise, for example, is comprised of energy that is equally distributed across all audible frequencies. Brown noise, sometimes called red noise, consists of higher energies at lower frequencies—think thunder and deep, roaring sounds.
Pink noise, on the other hand, is a shade deeper than white noise. It’s similar to white noise in that it includes all audible frequencies; however, unlike white noise, energy is not distributed equally among them.
I have found that the rain sounds I listen to are more pink noise than white noise, and I prefer it for sleeping. If you are having trouble sleeping or relaxing, try listening to some pink noise.
For more on it, see: Pink Noise Sleep Benefits | Apartment Therapy
For all of you performing (or interested in performing) mindfulness, I recommend you read this: The Honest Guide to Mindfulness : zen habits.
If you have been doing mindfulness for awhile and you are getting frustrated or giving up, then it can help ease your frustration and prevent you from quitting. If you are new to mindfulness and concerned you won’t be able to do it effectively, then it can help give you some perspective.
Mindfulness has been good for me. I am looking forward to reading this from time to time whenever I find it difficult.
It’s odd how people perceive the iPad after a decade. From what I read, the view overall seems negative. Even smart analysts like Stratechery call it “tragic”.
I can see why reviewers see that. They had an expectation of what the device could be, and lament that it never became that. That is one way to perceive it.
I think there are two different and better ways to view it. One way is seeing the iPad as a secondary device. The iPad will be always secondary to the iPhone, just as the Touch will always be secondary to the iPhone. The iPhone is the premier Apple device, and all other devices do and even should be secondary to it. The iPhone sits at the center, and the Watch and the Airpods and the other devices sit outside of that.
Another way of looking at it is that perhaps the MacBook, the iPhone, Apple TV and the iPad will merge over time. Perhaps in the future there will be no separate MacBook and iPhone. Instead there will be a Display, a Keyboard or UI of some form, and and a Network Device. Underneath it all will be software that brings them all together. That’s my long term expectation.
The iPad is a great device. It’s not the iPhone, and it’s not a Mac. It does what Apple needs it to do right now, and it will continue to do so over time.
For fans of Bong Joon-ho’s film, Parasite, here’s a fine essay on some of the things lost in translation:
Gen.medium.com/subtitles-cant-capture-the-full-class-critique-in-parasite
I am not too surprised: any film would lose something in translation, and a smart film like this one takes on further risk as it aims to speak to audiences at different levels.
Of course if you haven’t seen the film yet, I highly recommend it (and recommend you watch it before reading more about it).
After last night’s debacle at the Iowa caucus for the Democrats, there are going to be many hot takes published on what should change. I suspect many of them will be bad. The following is pretty good, I think.
Something should change, though. That was an embarrassing disaster.
— Read on http://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2020/1/31/21087017/iowa-caucus-democratic-primary-2020
Here’s something to ponder on a Sunday:
The rich were meant to have the most leisure time. The working poor were meant to have the least. The opposite is happening.
That is extracted from this: The Free-Time Paradox in America – The Atlantic
It’s a fascinating study of work and leisure and why it is not what many expected.
It’s a great work for many reasons, not least is the technically superb use of Audio Visual technology. It’s well worth seeing and experiencing. Do so soon: it ends May, 2020.
For more on it, see: Lisa Reihana: in Pursuit of Venus [infected] | Art Gallery of Ontario
Why? Because as Austin Kleon points out, it is the shortest month. Even this year, when we have a leap year.
It’s also a better month to go to the gym, because all the people who made resolutions have dropped off.
In the northern hemisphere it’s cold and dark, which makes it a perfect time to resolve to read more.
If you want to diet or not drink or not smoke for a month, why not pick the shortest month.
And hey, if you need a calendar to keep track of how well you are doing, go here: 29-day challenge – Austin Kleon.
Good luck!
P.S. You get an extra day this year, and it falls on a weekend! Use it to do something you don’t normally have time for!
If you for whatever reason what to turn an image into a glitched out version of itself, you can do that easily, here.
Have fun!
Anyone wanting to tell a story, be it a novel or a business proposal, could do well to read The 22 rules of storytelling, according to Pixar.
At my work we are a fan of #4. But they are all good.
Stuck telling a story? Check out the list.
Sorry, yes, there is a new form of fraud coming to get you. It’s called “smishing”. What is it?
“smishing” scams (the word combines SMS, the technical format for texting, and phishing) have become increasingly common. Fraudsters often create realistic-looking texts from seemingly reputable sources, such as FedEx or Amazon, which are then used to extract personal information: passwords, Social Security numbers, bank account or credit card numbers.
So, yeah, be careful about responding to text from people you don’t know and especially from organizations who may or may not be the real deal. For more on this, see: FedEx didn’t send that text about a package. It’s a scam. – The Washington Post
Forget what Steven Mnuchin said about Greta Thunberg needing to study economics before offering climate change proposals. That was an asinine thing for him to say.. But read that article in the Washington Post for the ideas. They spoke to an economist about climate change and how economics comes in and it’s worthwhile for that.
People might argue that we need to do something about climate change, but we can’t afford it. If you want to argue back, the article can help.
This article, This Is How You Live on Swiss Time, is a great piece for two reasons:
This article was published in 2015. In 2019 her book, Fleishman Is in Trouble, was a big hit that was talked about everywhere. If you haven’t read her before, read this travel article, and you will get a sense for what a fine writer she is. Then get her book. 🙂
P.S. This was published in afar.com. If you like to travel, or like to dream about travelling, it’s a great site.
Nothing, of course, unless you are playing by the rules and goals of Silicon Valley, where VC money comes at a cost. In this piece He Wanted a Unicorn. He Got … a Sustainable Business | WIRED, we hear
(this) story is one part cautionary tale for entrepreneurs seduced by the allure of venture capital and billion-dollar valuations, and one part an example of how a company can thrive outside those expectations.
I liked the angle of this story and found it fascinating. I think we need more stories of people quite nicely achieving a sustainable business. It’s not that having a blockbuster business is terrible, but it is rare, like all exceptional things are. It’s a winner takes all approach to business. To me, a better approach is that people can be successful in many different ways. Ways like having a sustainable business that provides a service that people really need. That’s a good measure of success to me. I hope we can get more such stories.
…is a fantastic story you can read about here: Princeton University portraits lacked diversity, so artist Mario Moore painted blue-collar workers who ‘really run things’ – The Washington Post.
His painting is fine, and the subject matter he has chosen especially so. Check out the story: it has many of his works on display too.
The notion of retirement in the Western world has been changing since the mid 20th century, and it will continue to change as the population increasingly gets older. To get an appreciation for what that means and what can be done, these three articles are worth reading:
Not fun reading, but essential.
Tech manufacturers are struggling to make folding devices. So far the folding smartphones are not where they need to be. Lenovo has taken a different approach, by building a folding tablet first, and not a folding smartphone.
Whether this will be a hit remains to be seen. But as the Yanko Design piece shows, the chance of success with a folding tablet is much higher than a folding phone. If it is a hit, it could lead to smaller devices (i.e., phones) eventually getting that way too.
Is this: Inside Microsoft’s surprise decision to work with Google on its Edge browser – The Verge.
Years ago Microsoft would have not made such a move. They would have kept trying until the bitter end (e.g. Zune, Microsoft phone). Instead Nadella and team made a decision based more on what works for the users rather that what works for Microsoft. It’s not a radical notion in itself, but for a company that prides itself on being successful and dominant, it’s a big switch. And it’s not just here with browsers. Microsoft’s cloud service, Azure, has a range of technology supported. It’s one of the reasons it is successful.
Microsoft has always been a successful company. They were successful under Gates and Ballmer with one approach. Nadella has a somewhat different approach, and I believe they will continue to be successful with it.
Ballie is the cute little yellow ball above. Samsung unvailled ‘Ballie’ at the 2020 Consumer Electronic Show. If you go to the link, you can read all the things Ballie can do for you. What you don’t get to read is what Ballie is going to do for others. Because there’s never been a more potentially intrusive device in your house like this one. It can go around your house 24/7, recording not just sounds but images. Images (and sounds) that anyone back on the Internet can process.
Until companies and other organizations can demonstrate proper stewardship of such data, I wouldn’t recommend anyone get one of these things. They are far from essential and potentially harmful.
Whatever else you think of Sanders and his politics, if you think he is ineffective, then I recommend these two pieces:
I used to wonder if he was effective, but not anymore. Based on those piece, I think he has been effective, and if anything, very effective in certain years.
And not just amazing visually, either. There are a number of new and better ways this new IKEA will be operating in Austria’s capital. To really get an appreciation for it, see this: IKEA is building a big new store in Vienna with no parking | TreeHugger
Is simple: it’s wanted less and less. As this piece shows, No One Wants Your Used Clothes Anymore.
What’s changed? Well…
For decades, the donation bin has offered consumers in rich countries a guilt-free way to unload their old clothing. In a virtuous and profitable cycle, a global network of traders would collect these garments, grade them, and transport them around the world to be recycled, worn again, or turned into rags and stuffing.
Now that cycle is breaking down. Fashion trends are accelerating, new clothes are becoming as cheap as used ones, and poor countries are turning their backs on the secondhand trade. Without significant changes in the way that clothes are made and marketed, this could add up to an environmental disaster in the making.
I think there is no easy remedy for this, unless you’re someone happy to wear a limited number of pieces of clothing over and over again. But something will have to change. If you thought all those clothes you put in the donation bin are going on people’s bodies and not to the garbage dump, then read the piece.
Yesterday I asked that about Muji. The short answer for Muji: not doomed yet, but in trouble.
For Forever 21, it appears to be a different story. If you read this, The Failure of the Fast-Fashion Forever 21 Empire – Bloomberg, you see an organization in big trouble, with poor management and poor demand for their product. It is still possible for them to pull out, but I would be surprised if Forever 21 is still a going concern in 2021.
Not yet, but clearly it is in trouble, based on this: Why Muji Is Struggling | News & Analysis | BoF.
My feeling is they have expanded past the point it is sustainable, and now they are going to have to adjust. Hopefully they can adjust: they are a good company and they could be as big as IKEA or H&M. Or they could go bankrupt. The next few years will show which direction they go.
Thanks to Jeff Smith for sending me this link!
You can do it in 10 seconds:
go to Settings > General > Keyboard, scroll down and tap the slider next to “Memoji Keyboard” to disable Memojis in all apps. This is much easier compared to disabling Memojis in earlier versions of iOS and iPadOS 13.
It’s iconic and feels like it’s been around forever, but the UPC is a fairly new invention. The inventor, George Laurer, worked for IBM and invented it in the 1970s. There’s a good write up on him and his invention, here: Universal Product Code Designer George Laurer Dies At 94 : NPR.
While IBM has been associated with many IT innovations, this one particular one likely touches more people’s lives than any other.
For more on how to read UPCs, and to appreciate just how much information is packed into one, go here.
…are here!
Years ago (2011, 2012) I used to post music links every Friday night (as well as other days and nights). On December, I would focus on Christmas music. These are some of my favourites.
Enjoy! And joy to the world….
Bonus track: In the Bleak Midwinter which is hauntingly beautiful.
Then you need this article in the New York Times:
www.nytimes.com/2019/12/18/smarter-living/last-minute-gift-ideas.html
It has a wide range of gift ideas but more importantly, it will help you better think about what to get someone.
Don’t panic, you still have time!
According to this, it is: ‘Four hours to walk off pizza calories’ warning works, experts say – BBC News. For example, if you were to buy a pizza or a chocolate bar, they argue that…
Appreciating it would take four hours to walk off the calories in a pizza or 22 minutes to run off a chocolate bar creates an awareness of the energy cost of food, they say.
That’s true. But it’s also not a great comparison. It’s pretty much a given that exercise is not a great way of losing weight, so most foods will come across as requiring a lot of exercise to work off the food. And it may be a lot more exercise than most people do. This will just end up shaming more people than it benefits.
I think a better approach would be to highlight what percentage of your recommended caloric allowance a selection of food is. I believe this would be much better. Foods have something similar already: they tell you what percentage of vitamins, fibre, etc. a selection of food provides for your diet. They could do the same thing with calories. Hey, on some days when you hadn’t had much to eat, something that provides you 50% of your daily calories may be fine.
No matter what, providing health guidance is never simple. But if I had to decide, I’d go with percentages.
This is a fascinating article on the use of tiny homes to help those without a place to call their own: In Detroit, Tiny Homes Are More Than a Lifestyle Trend – POLITICO Magazine
I think for many cities, apartment buildings are the way to go. More importantly, I think cities need to wake up to the problem of unaffordable housing and strive to make living in the city achievable and satisying for those that live there. If that means high rises in one city and tiny homes in another, then what works best is what should be aimed for. Here’s to livable and affordable places to live.
(Image from the article. It’s a nice place. Very IKEA, but that’s ok.)
I know, everyone says you can’t buy happiness. I think this piece does a good job of showing how money can enable you to find happiness. Now you don’t need money for this, but money helps.
What does the article say you should do?
If you read the piece, you’ll get a taste of what they are getting at: Shopping for Happiness – Put A Number On It!
Of course, you can have lots happy moments without spending any money, and lots more spending a fraction of what some people spend. Perhaps the real goal is to find as many ways as you can to be happy, and aim for those with the least amount of spending.
Regardless of what you do, aim to be happy and pursue it.
Smart People I Know 