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July 28, 2022

Airpods back

The charging case for my Airpods pro broke down and stopped charging a month or so ago. This was rather inconvenient for earbuds which can not be charged by themselves, a fact which had for some reason not really struck me before.

The repair process was only noteworthy in that it took a long time for "replacement parts" - i.e. a completely new case - to be delivered. In total, including almost two weeks where holiday travel made me unable to pick them up - I think I was without them for about a month.

The revelation in the whole experience was just how nice it was to have them back.

While they were gone, I went back to using whichever felt most convenient of my old wired Apple earbuds and my over-ear wireless and noise cancelling Sony MDR-100ABN.

The earbuds felt somewhat medieval, with the auto-tangling wire and the clicker surprisingly eager to invoke Siri when I was just trying to play or pause.

The Sonys on the other hand, I love in so many ways. They are comfortable, the batteries last and last, they have distinct physical buttons for control, and the noise cancelling is great. But they are also bulky, feel somewhat excluding to the rest of the world, and their easiness on my head mean that it does not take too much head movement to displace them. And the foamy earcups are completely out whenever there is any risk of an activity making me sweat to any degree.

All of this was things I noticed while waiting for my Airpods to return, but none of it felt like a huge issue. I had been living that life for years before the Airpods, and it did not feel to bad this time either. Waiting did not feel like a pain. Perhaps I did not really need them?

Then I got them back and put them in.

Ah.

This was what using them was like.

The snugness in my ears, that little change in tone as the noise cancellation kicks in, the quick connection, the always being charged out of the case … the whole Airpod life is just so nice. Oh, I should add the speed at which I can put them on and put them away too, neither the Sonys nor the wired buds come anywhere close no matter how good I become at cable management.

Do I need airpods? No. Can I live happily without them? Most definitely. Are they worth the money and do they make my life better? Absolutely.

This is what Apple products should be all about.

June 21, 2022

The end of a pod

My epic and completely unnecessary project of re-listening to all of Reconcilable differences is almost at an end, and I look forward to … something different?

I am not sure why, but at some point I turned this little adventure into a milestone. Once I am done, I intend to try and keep my podcast listening time down and instead … do other things. There should be other things I can spend all that focus on, at least sometimes. I clearly feel when I have been listening too much for one day, I get a bit restless and feel like I have wasted time and energy on the wrong things. And because I like to focus on what I listen to, I rarely really let my mind wander while listening to podcasts. Background processing of other thoughts is if not on hold then at least greatly slowed down compared to when I listen to music, or, even better, nothing but my surroundings.

In short, I have the classic goal of mindlessly consuming less and instead do things with more intent - including truly doing nothing and relaxing.

It has never really worked out before, so I look forward to giving it another go.

June 20, 2022

Books I have read

Books and other literature I have read, in, somewhat uncertain, reverse chronological order. The list starts from the summer of 2008, and my main purpose with it is to be able to see what I have actually been reading. I do feel that I read many quite good books, but I never seem to be able to recall what I have recently read when asked for recommendations.

May 30, 2022

Peak dental care

Sometimes, reaching a local maximum can be a lot more rewarding than the absolute one.

I had some good years of dentist relations, and of course a lot of so-so ones. Years where the little things add up in one way or the other, where focusing on one thing only seems to mean another will be remarked upon during the next check-up.

Last time I went, we had the usual conversations, the usual x-rays, and the usual poking around. As far as I recall, the comments sounded as they usually do as well.

Then, the dentist wrapped up the examination. I was expecting some immediate or schedulet follow-up to address this or that, as well some comments about flossing more, brushing softer, not drinking carbonated drinks, what have you.

All I got was "We do not need to do anything."

No praise could have felt greater.

May 20, 2022

Can touch this

In 2007, I got a touch-based device which felt magical.

Not a phone, silly, that had to wait another year.

No, it was the Ipod touch.

On the occasion of Apple discontinuing the Ipod touch line, we started talking about it on a recent episode of Björeman // Melin. I was wondering out loud where mine was, only to realize that it was sitting right there on the shelf just above my monitor.

Still beautiful.

Ipod touch charging Ipod touch charging

Still slimmer than my actual Ihpone.

And, for some reason, it still works perfectly.

Slide to unlock Slide to unlock

It is definitely a relic frozen in time. Old OS, no chances of updates, no chance of new apps, and all sorts of show stoppers (and slowness) when it comes to browsing the web.

Ipod touch home screen Ipod touch home screen

But you know what is good about a device which fits all of your music into your pocket? You do not need any connection to the rest of the world to enjoy your music.

Not only that, but my old music collection actually contains some stuff I can not find on Spotify. Video game remixes for one, but, more importantly, Girl talk's essential All day.

Girl talk's All day Girl talk's All day

Yes, Plex and Plexamp and all that good stuff. But that is a whole lot more stuff and connections than just having the songs in my pocket, a swipe and a tap away from my ears.

Little details:

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