My barber introduced me to safety razors about twelve years ago, and the lack of plastic waste still impresses me. It's not just the blades, either. You stop buying those big plastic cartridge packs completely. My bathroom bin takes weeks to fill up now, which is a pretty clear sign it's working.

What changed my mind from blaming just pictures was seeing the steps were wrong too.

Remember my buddy trying to fold his giant Rainier map back up in a gust of wind. He had all these pencil notes in the margins about creek crossings, little stars for good camp spots. Was way more into that messy, marked up paper than any perfect GPS track. Said you could feel the trip in the creases and coffee stains. Totally different vibe.

Ugh, tell me about it... my neighbor makes this amazing tofu stir-fry and it just makes my own attempts feel so sad. Mine always turns into a soggy mess or the sauce tastes like nothing. Seeing someone else just nail it is the worst kind of kitchen envy. It’s like the universe is showing off right in front of you. Just once, I want my veggies to have that perfect crunch and the flavor to actually pop. Guess some people just have the stir-fry gift and the rest of us burn garlic.

Was I wrong to focus on filters?