If you found the documentary Free Solo – about climbing sheer mountain cliffs without ropes – nerve-wracking, then you’ll find The Alpinist documentary even more so. The crazy protagonist of Free Solo says the Alpinist is even crazier – he ascends sheer mountains in winter snow and ice – without ropes and by himself. This film tries hard to explain the why – why would anyone do this for fun? Watch till the end (on Amazon Prime). The documentary explains as well as it can be explained. — KK

Just click anywhere on the OpenTimes map of the United States and it displays color-coded zones showing how long it would take to drive, bike, or walk to surrounding areas — up to 6 hours away. (The driving times can be optimistic since they don't factor in traffic.) — MF

The Ultimate Book List is a directory of books recommended by famous personalities, celebrities, and experts. I like that it includes source links to interviews and articles where these books were mentioned. If you’re just browsing, you can filter all the listed books by "most recommended." — CD

As a photographer and artist, I’ve longed for this tool, which you can try out for free now. It’s pretty cool. Using Google’s experimental Gemini 2.0 Flash you can upload an image (photograph, painting, cartoon, etc.) and have the AI make very specific changes in the image while keeping the rest of the image intact. Usually you get very convincing edits that match the original image. Sort of like the world’s best photoshopping for free instantly. (You need to register with Google’s AI Studio > Image Generation to get this beta version. Choose Gemini 2.0 Flash (Image Generation) Experimental from the Model dropdown menu in the right column, and then use the + to upload an image, and then type your request.). — KK

This Substack post presents a two-step "cosmic worldview" quiz designed to help you identify your core beliefs about the nature of reality and your place in the cosmos. First, you answer a series of questions to identify your beliefs about the nature of reality at a high level. Once you've identified with a broad cosmological category, you refine your beliefs by answering one final question to pinpoint your precise view of the cosmos. I took it a few times, because I don’t have a precise view, I’m somewhere between animism, Gnosticism, and the multiverse theory. This quiz is useful for self-discovery and for understanding diverse perspectives on existence. — CD

I'm starting to replace my plastic cooking utensils with wood and metal. I started by getting an OXO Good Grips set of 3 beech wood spoons (small, medium, and large). I like the solid (rather than laminated) design with a chunky handle. Just don't put them in the dishwasher — that's a quick way to ruin any wooden utensil. — MF

Other people’s dreams are usually not interesting, but Claudia Dawson—our "CD" in this newsletter—records and visualizes her dreams daily in a way I find enjoyable to read. She summarizes her dream in a few brief sentences, and illustrates them with an AI-generated image. She made a book of her most potent and profound dreams of the last few years, and I’ve been sending friends a copy because it is an unusual and distinctive art. The collection is called Many-Worlds Vision, and she also sends out a newsletter by the same name. – KK

This free website app lets you design a map to visualize your life in weeks. It’s pretty self-explanatory and easy to use, you just need to create a free account to save it. I’m still working on mine, adding moves, jobs, and relationships, but as I build it and preview it, I feel a mix of emotions that is both sobering and inspirational for the second half of my life. — CD

Astronauts seeing Earth from space experience a mix of awe and interconnectedness that reduces anxiety and increases well-being. Astronaut Edgar Mitchell called it an "explosion of awareness." This Forbes article explains how to get this "overview effect" without leaving Earth. The key is seeking experiences that make you feel small against something vast: stand on high viewpoints, stargaze away from city lights, step back to find meaning, and find a way to "trust the process." — MF

I recommend you watch the Oscar-winning film Emilia Perez without knowing too much about it. Don’t read up. The less you know ahead of time, the better. I can say that it’s in Spanish with subtitles, a crime melodrama with feel-good vibes, plus it is a French musical (!), and you won’t guess what happens next. Not in a weird, spooky, absurd way, but in a plausibly surprising way. It is now streaming on Netflix. — KK

I use an OXO POP Container (1.7 Qt) to store coffee beans. It has a push-button mechanism to create an airtight seal. It's dishwasher safe, including the lid. Just don't drop it — the BPA-free plastic can crack. — MF

These affirmations support growth at every stage of life, starting with the prenatal, and are designed to be used across your entire lifespan. Many of these messages were not expressed to me as a child, but I am using them now as a way to "reparent" myself. You can speak them to yourself, write them down and carry them with you, or express them through the way you speak, touch, and interact with the people you love, especially when they need support. The one I’m working on right now is: “You can say your hellos and goodbyes to people, roles, dreams, and decisions.” — CD

The compact EPICKA Universal Travel Adapter has 5 USB ports (3 USB-C, 2 USB-A) and plug configurations for US/EU/UK/AUS. Its LED power indicator lets you know it's working. Just remember it's not a voltage converter — your devices need to be dual-voltage compatible. — MF

One of the crazier projects funded by the US government was a plan in 1957 to build a 4,000-ton spaceship powered by exploding nuclear bombs. A small group of scientists aimed to reach Mars by 1965 in Project Orion, long before the dream of NASA’s Apollo. One of those working on the project was physicist Freeman Dyson. His son George Dyson interviewed his father and all remaining participants, and got thousands of declassified documents to tell the whole astounding story in a remarkable book, Project Orion. Published to little fanfare in 2002, Dyson has re-released a self-published expanded version (2025) with new material, new documents and illustrations, full citations of his sources, all material that the original publisher excluded. This strange story has lessons for attempting (and funding) hairy, audacious seemingly impossible projects. It’s great historical storytelling, too. – KK

I’m often very unimpressed with my Netflix algorithm, but these Netflix Codes have helped me discover new and surprising content. It’s useful, if you can overlook all the unsightly ads. — CD

This web tool instantly shows how a word translates across about 30 European languages, displayed on a color-coded map. Type in English words like "cat" or "thank you" and the translations appear in their geographic locations. The color codes show linguistic families like Romance and Slavic languages. Proszę bardzo! — MF

If you’re considering psychedelic therapy, I recommend starting with Althea’s Psychedelic Preparedness Scale, a three-minute quiz that helps assess your readiness by evaluating mental health stability, intentions, knowledge, support systems, and coping skills. Developed in a clinical trial at University College London, the quiz identifies areas needing improvement to ensure a safer and more meaningful experience. Althea, a Public Benefit Corporation based in Oregon and Colorado, connects individuals with licensed facilitators for legal psychedelic therapy, aiming to make these transformative experiences more accessible and stigma-free. — CD

China is vast, nearly a continent to itself with highly diverse ethnic cultures. It has become an easy place to travel, with 28,000 miles (45,000 km) of high speed trains, and cheap domestic flights. My guide to traveling to the most interesting places in China is an English-speaking YouTuber, Yan, who calls herself Little Chinese Everywhere. Yan records her explorations of her own country, usually to offbeat, little-visited places, far from crowds, but extremely enjoyable. She specializes in the border areas of China where it mixes minority cultures (Tibetan, Mongolian, Uyghur, Vietnamese, etc.). Her channel is perfect armchair travel because she captures a very unromantic view of China, taking buses, renting motor scooter, staying at expensive hostels, interviewing shop keepers. This is the real China, and if you wanted to get a sense of what the everyday country is like, watch her channel. Better yet, visit it. — KK

I noticed several professional electricians using this thing: The Klein Non-Contact Voltage Tester is a small magic wand that beeps when it detects a live current in a wire, or a switch or a cable or anything electronic. The cool thing is that you don’t need to bare the wire or contact, you just wave this near the wire. That is both much safer and way quicker. It can detect voltages between 12 and 1,000 which will be enough for most uses. For me it has replaced several devices in my toolbox I used to use to detect a live current. — KK

Things.in is useful for creating a travel guide and a curated list of the top sights, restaurants, and places to stay in a city. I’m currently planning a trip to London and feeling overwhelmed by all the history and important sights to see. This tool is helpful in narrowing down my itinerary. — CD