What better moment than "the last Friday of February" to make a bold prediction:
Today's cold plunge is 2025's air quality.
(...it's possible that Cold Plunge Discourse has not reached you yet. Stay very still and try not to make a sound)
Health-wise, air quality has more proven health effects and is easier to measure than most other variables. And finally, the tech is getting cheap enough for mass adoption. Watch for portable air monitors, CO2 influencers, "home airflow consultants" to be everywhere within a few years.
And we're not at all above the trend β there's an air quality question in the 30sec survey down below (not to mention the randomly drawn $50 credit!).
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Our recommendation this month:
In need of adventure? May we suggest going *overland* India to Kathmandu. Start by fending off sketchy border guards in Raxaul, find a car willing to take you (and 9 others) β then prepare for a full day alternating between smashing your head against the car ceiling, spotting mountainous cricket games, and grabbing tea.
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"The inspiration behind this bar? The co-founders' living room" says everything you need to know about the vibe of 'listening bars'.
Conceptually building on post-war Japanese jazz spots (snobby local note: Bar Track is overrated) listening bars are focused on 1) music quality, 2) vibes, and ...378) everything else.
People usually talk about coffee shops being the ' third place' but as you'll see from this collection of listening bars, the Laptop Invasion into cafes* means bars are one of the few remaining 'not home, not work' spaces out there.
*guilty as charged |
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On first glance, the Cheap Old Houses instagram is pure old-fashioned escapism β who doesn't dream of packing it all in and moving to a ramshackle 18th-century Norwegian barn?!
The difference now is we're able to have delicious real estate cake and eat it. What's the result of increasing viability of remote work, a collective yearning for both escape and community, and, yes, Instagram accounts?
One answer is syndicates. Groups of friends teaming up with $5-10K each and sharing a dream spot (see the classic of the genre, We Bought An Island).
Anyone else have examples of this? |
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If the first generation of cloud services could uncharitably be described as 'free, because you're the product', we see the second gen as not-free layers over the top, for an improved experience.
When a service is free, and especially if it's used by pretty much everyone, whoever built it isn't motivated to make improvements.
Often, it's up to indies to build a barnacle on the whale to serve smaller communities. Latest example: Simplify, a (paid) plugin to improve Gmail. |
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As always, 2 answers and 30 seconds is all it takes for a randomly drawn $50 store credit here. |
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As always: let us know what you liked, what you'd like to see more of, your favourite listening bar, that sorta thing.
J, D, & the Minaal team
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In Sheep's Clothing, Downtown LA |
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Made with β€οΈ all over the π by the Minaal crew.
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