A week or two ago, on a sunny afternoon, a small business owner set up a folding table in a park near my house. He was selling various small Judaica items, and he parked himself on a bench for a few hours, equipped with his phone and a portable credit card reader. My wife found … Continue reading “I don’t know which half is wasted”
Like nearly all millennials, I get my music and TV via streaming, thanks to Spotify, Netflix, and FilmStruck (RIP). But back in 2018, iTunes had a flash sale where they offered all eight seasons of The Office for just $25. Since I live overseas — and so my access to Netflix’s US selection depends on … Continue reading Peacock’s Pricing (AKA the best investment I ever made)
The stock market kicked off 2021 with a swift 2%+ tumble. Ouch. For anyone who follows the market, this doubtless brings back memories of March 2020. COVID cases were on a sharp rise, and the stock market bottomed out, with a 30%+ drop over the course of just a few short weeks. A number of … Continue reading Stocks are on sale
A few days ago, my wife and I re-watched The Office episode, “St. Patrick’s Day.” Toward the end of the episode, Michael Scott joins his employees at the bar, and collegially offers to buy drinks for a group of about nine coworkers. It’s a sweet moment, and a coda to an excellent episode. What stuck … Continue reading “Drinks are on Me!”
Much has been written about Quibi — the streaming video service launched a few weeks ago by Jeffrey Katzenberg and Meg Whitman. The central conceit of the platform was that it was premised upon shortform, mobile-first videos – “quick bites,” thus the name Quibi. Unfortunately for its creators, Quibi has largely been a flop. Which … Continue reading Disney+ and Quibi. It’s a Small Screen World, After All.
After a full year, I finally finished reading Robert Caro’s The Power Broker. It’s a seriously incredible exploration of the life, achievements, and controversies of Robert Moses – New York City’s “Master Builder” – who singlehandedly reshaped the face of New York City, and the lives of its millions of inhabitants, for generations. The scope … Continue reading On Finishing the Power Broker
When I first got this email from United, about their new hygiene + cleaning standards, it just kinda rubbed me the wrong way. I had trouble figuring out why exactly it felt a little off, but I think I’ve boiled it down to a few things.For starters, it strikes me as odd that this new … Continue reading CleanPlus℠
There was an article in The New York Times the other day, about how the iPad has proved to be a remarkably versatile device to have while we all shelter in place. Brian X. Chen writes, “With a bigger screen than an iPhone, the iPad excels at videoconferencing with apps like FaceTime and Zoom, and … Continue reading iPad: More than Just Watching Netflix
As someone who lives in Israel, but travels to/from the US quite a bit, I’m always surprised by how bifurcated the messaging experience is. In Israel — and much of the rest of the world ex-Asia — WhatsApp is dominant. Heck, billionaires and oligarchs even WhatsApp one another, apparently. In Israel, everything — I mean … Continue reading WhatsApp vs. iMessage
One of my goals for 2019 was to read more, with the specific aim of reading two books/month, which I more or less hit. I also had a few other, more specific goals within reading itself. Given the fecklessness and absurdity of this Presidential administration, I wanted to read more about Presidents – about competent … Continue reading 2019 Reading Roundup
Silicon Spatula 