Another mixed bag of a year, but here are some things that I’ve enjoyed

Media

Music 🎧

I’ve done a terrible job of keeping up with new music this year as I’ve been listening to way more podcasts, but some of the favourite albums that I discovered this year:

  • We’re All Alone in This Together - Dave
  • Blue Weekend - Wolf Alice
  • Nobody Cares Till Everybody Does - Kofi Stone
  • Brain Pain - Four Year Strong

Podcasts 🎙

I probably spend too much of my day listening to podcasts. Most of the shows I listen to have been ones that I’ve had in the rotation for a few years. But there were a couple new ones that broke into that rotation this year.

Apps 📱

There haven’t been a lot of apps that are new to me this year, only a few things have made it into regular rotation.

  • Obsidian - this is what I use to write longer form bits of text (like this post). I don’t do a ton of that but Obsidian is nice, and I feel like it’s something that I’ve barely scratched the surface of. It’s endlessly customisable.

Other

YouTube Premium is something that I finally decided to pull the trigger on this year, and I really don’t think I could go back. YouTube ads are awful, so removal of those alone is enough to justify the price. Add to that the ability to use picture in picture and it’s even better. w

Objects

Stationary 📝

My notebook obsession shows no sign of dying off.

I still use and love Field Notes notebooks, and some of their 2021 releases have been great. The summer edition Trailhead is an instant classic.

I have enjoyed journaling for a while now and the Theme System is a way of journaling that makes sense to me. The notebooks themselves are really high quality if you’re into that sort of thing. But you can also do it with any notebook, or even digitally.

Bags 🎒

I geek out a bit on bags, for years I’ve carried a Tom Bihn Synapse with me as my go to bag. This year I’ve added a few more bags to my collection each has a different use.

  • Tom Bihn Paragon has become my day to day backpack, its small and comfortable. It’s my go to bag if I need to go anywhere and take a laptop with me.

  • Aer Fit pack is now my gym bag of choice. It’s the perfect size for a change of clothes, bottle of water, and some extra trainers. Aer’s customer service have been top notch when I’ve had any issues and I definitely have my eye on more of their stuff in the future.

  • Tom Bihn Le Grand Derriere - I’ve written about this before. While I still don’t think it’s a perfect bag I do really like it and I know I’ll be using it for a long time.

  • Evergoods CAP2L is a definite bag geek thing. But the idea of having smaller pouches or cubes that you can pack into different bags is a game changer. The CAP2L is a great way to keep things like chargers, cables, and dongles organised when out and about. It even turns into a little desk caddy when you open it up