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“50 things I know”

Sasha Chapin, author of All the Wrong Moves: A Memoir About Chess, Love, and Ruining Everything, recently wrote a list of 50 things he knows. Here are a few samples:

• I know that travel is valuable because most knowledge can’t be written down. The most crucial info about a society is how it feels to be there—the rhythms of street life, where and when people eat meals, how gender works. You can read a million things about Japan without knowing the bodily experience of walking around in a truly high-trust society, for example.
• I know that unless you are exceptionally good with ripostes, the best way to win a fight with an angry person on the internet is to not respond. They will look ridiculous fuming impotently on their own.
• I know how to peel ginger. Use a spoon. The first time you do this, you’ll feel like you’re Neo with a fresh brain full of downloaded kung fu skills.

— MF

Expert Advice on Visual Communication

I’ve been learning a lot about visual thinking from Terri Lonier and her free newsletter, SOLO—designed to help solo entrepreneurs stand out. Terri holds a PhD in Business and Brand History and has extensive experience as a strategic advisor, and because of this, every issue feels like a master class in visual frameworks, storytelling, typography, and more. In her most recent issue, she shared her “7 Heroes of Visual Communication,” which directed me toward many new and fascinating resources. Check out her archive and subscribe here. — CD

Travel tip

Tip: When charging your phone on the go in a cafe, lounge, hotel, or friend’s house, place something large like your backpack or purse or coat RIGHT NEXT to the charger. You are far less likely to leave two things behind, and therefore less likely to forget the charger. — KK

Discover your archetypes

I recently came across Caroline Myss’s Archetype Oracle Cards at my therapist’s office and was so fascinated with it that I decided to purchase my own set. This deck includes 80 cards, each representing a different archetype with both its Light and Shadow Attributes. I like to make up different ways to play with this deck. Sometimes, I sift through the cards to identify the archetypes that are most active in my psyche or recognize those I might be suppressing by selecting the cards that resonate with or repel me. Other times, I draw a single card with the intention of deepening my understanding of it and observing how it might express itself in others. This deck has helped me better understand my own sub-personalities, and I think it would make an excellent tool for anyone doing “parts work,” like Internal Family Systems or Voice Dialogue and the Psychology of Selves. —CD

On-demand furniture moving

After moving into my new place, I realized I didn’t like where some of the heavier furniture pieces were situated. Instead of struggling to move them myself, I decided to use Lugg (“Uber for movers.”) Within an hour of booking through their app, two friendly and efficient movers arrived. They carefully relocated the pieces upstairs exactly where I wanted. The movers were total pros — quick yet meticulous about protecting my belongings and home. — MF

Small boat cruises

You could not pay me enough money to get onto one of those mega cruise boats, with multi thousands of passengers. However it turns out that small boat cruises are one of the best ways to do a vacation. I define small as less than 40 passengers, and ideally less than 25. You are on a floating hotel with meals so the everyday hassles of moving each night are removed. A small boat can debark and embark very quickly and visit many smaller places (villages and wilderness) that a huge boat cannot. You make your own entertainment: They encourage very active days, dropping you off to hike, canoe, bike, walk, snorkel, or kayak in the morning; you return for lunch and then repeat in the afternoon. They avoid shopping ports. Of course, the per person rate is higher for a small vessel, but we’ve found the difference very much worthwhile, as these have become our favorite vacations. A few of the tours that are 5-7 days long that we are familiar with are below. 

Galapagos — The boats sail at night. Every morning you wake up to a brand new island with a brand new biome. Lots of snorkeling and hiking with naturalists. We used Happy Gringos. 

Inland Passageway, Alaska — Head north through the calm inland sea, visiting glacier strewn fjords, wildlife close up, and native American islands. Kayaking, too. We used Alaskan Dreams. 

Mekong River — Sail from Siem Reap (and its Angor Wat) in Cambodia, all the way downstream to Ho Chi Min City on the coast of south Vietnam, with bicycle excursions along the way. Mark used Aqua Expeditions.

Turquoise Coast, Turkey — Join a gulet sailboat long the southern Mediterranean coast of Turkey, stopping at ancient Greek ruins, Turkish villages and swimming coves. These cruises have become very popular with party versions for young adults. I don’t remember who we used but try, Sail and Stay.

Superficially, large cruise boats claim to follow similar routes, but trust me, small boat cruises are a different species well worth your time. — KK

06/2/24