4 Bullet Thursday - Jan 12, 2023

My past week, summed up in 4 bullet points on things I found cool or found myself returning to think about:

• I finally retired my Economist Holiday Double Issue this week. This issue - which spans the last two weeks of the year - is always my favorite because it combines two of my favorite things: the writing of The Economist and history. Some things I learned this year include: Chicago is the grid-iest city; if Satya Nadella and his friends have their way, Cricket may be the next big sport in the US; and guano (yes that guano) was a valuable commodity back in the day before synthetic nitrogen fertilizers. I nearly got through all the fun articles before the first issue of 2023 arrived. (I have a strict rule that the previous issue of any periodical must be recycled when the next issue arrives lest they pile up and create the hell described in The Good Place).
• This week I was playing Factorio On Switch. I'm one of those people who likes my games to feel like work. Because of the cult popularity of Factorio, I know I'm not alone. Factorio basically boils down to a huge optimization problem as you configure robots and complex manufacturing workflows to research and build a series of successively more resource-consuming items. Factorio is incredibly well-balanced and challenging enough to keep me returning for casual play. If you like simulation/management games, check it out!
• We got a Breville Bambino as a wedding gift and now that I've started using it I literally can't stop. With no shame, I'm buying vanilla syrup by the case and making myself lattes for dayyys. I also have so much more respect for baristas after the stress of deciding to make a latte 4 minutes before a meeting starts.
• Every couple of months I totally revamp my task, notes, and planning systems. There is perhaps no better catalyst for this change than New Years Resolutions (which of course must be specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and timely). My most recent revamping involved moving all of my tasks - including goals and habits - into ClickUp (which I was previously using just for work). Before you start thinking that these posts are all about me flogging products, let me be very clear that I don't recommend ClickUp (notice I didn't link it. That'll show 'em). It's buggy and clunky and better for teams than individuals. BUT at least all of my stuff is in one place now. And I've found that when it comes to task systems, it's constantly revamping them that matters far more than what system one uses at a given time.