I discovered a delightful five-minute word puzzle game called Bracket City. The gameplay is simple — you just start typing words to solve crossword-like clues in brackets that are nested within other clues. What makes it addictive is how the clues build on each other, with each solution revealing new parts of connected puzzles. Here's the tutorial example: [where [opposite of clean] dishes pile up] or [exercise in a [game played with a cue ball]]. You can peek at the first letter of any clue if you're stuck. I’ll bet the NY Times will end up buying it. — MF

Like the Grand Canyon, or the Pyramids, I believe Burning Man is something you should experience at least once in your life, no matter who you are. This year is a good time to go, because it is no longer cool and you can easily get tickets. It is still a spectacle of art and creativity, a wonder of urban design, a singular example of a miraculous gift economy, and the best bicycle city on Earth. The cliches about it are all true, yet it will astonish you. I will make this guarantee: If you have never been to Burning Man, and you go this year and are bored, I will personally refund your ticket price. The festival erupts north of Reno, Nevada from August 24 to September 1, 2025 and the easiest way to attend it is in an RV. — KK

I still regularly create AI imagery of my dreams using Midjourney, and I recently discovered Whisk, a Google lab tool for blending different visual elements into something entirely new. I just drag and drop the images, and I’m able to merge styles, subjects, and scenes. I can provide some visual guidance with text, but you don’t need to be an expert at writing prompts to have fun with it. It feels like a playground for creative visualization. — CD

I created a searchable archive of every product we've recommended in Recomendo and our other newsletters since 2020. The database includes thousands of items (with photos) that you can filter by category, date, or keyword. Want to see all the knives we've reviewed? Just type "knife" in the search field. This makes it easy to browse our entire review history or find specific recommendations. The site is ready to explore, though I'm open to suggestions for improvements. — MF

I was in Segovia, Spain recently and used my iPhone to take a photo of a painting at the cathedral that interested me. There was no signage next to the painting. Later, when browsing through my shots, I noticed an unfamiliar option when I tapped the "info" button — "Look Up Artwork." One tap and I had the painting's name, artist, date, current location, and link to Wikipedia. This feature works retroactively on all art photos in my library. — MF

This article offers advice on "How to see the humanity in anyone" by replacing certainty about what we think we know about other people with curiosity about what we don’t yet know. The author, Scott Shigeoka, suggests using techniques like individuating people by focusing on their unique preferences rather than group identities, which he calls the “Garden Salad” effect. I found that the most crucial advice for cultivating deep curiosity is to value the dignity of every person, which simply means acknowledging their inherent worth and choosing connection over judgment. Definitely worth a read, but if you prefer video, here’s a link to his TED talk: "Can curiosity heal division?" — CD

Over the years we have accumulated a variety of can openers. The one we always reach for is the Oxo Good Grip Smooth Edge Can Opener. It has a fat easy-to-grasp handle. It is one of those can openers that slices off the top of the lid from the outside, rather than from inside of the top of the lid. This way when you lift the lid off, there are no sharp edges. It is also the easiest can opener to use, taking the least effort to spin. However, it is now hard to find because Oxo discontinued it. The Kuhn Rikon Safety Can Opener is a decent alternative with a similar approach. It is not quite as ergonomic, but still better than the traditional style. — KK

LibriVox.org is an amazing resource offering 40 thousand free public domain audiobooks read by volunteers. The audio quality and reader performance varies but is usually quite good. Some classics, like Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, have multiple versions to choose from, so listen to short snippets and choose your favorite. The LibriVox app makes it easy to download and listen on your phone. All recordings are public domain, so you can freely share and remix them. The volunteer-powered nature of the project means it keeps growing, with new audiobooks added regularly. I recommend Wired Love — an 1879 novel about telegraph operators falling in love before they meet that feels surprisingly modern in the age of texting and online dating. — MF

I enjoy discovering and subscribing to new recommendation newsletters, especially those written by women. Here’s a list of what’s currently in my inbox. — CD

• What I Loved This Week by technology worker Sarah H., a newsletter featuring book and entertainment recommendations, along with curated links and rabbit holes.

• A thing or two with Claire and Erica, which delivers the 10 finds they’re most excited about—from recipes to books to beauty products—that are destined to make your Mondays better.

• The iivy by Kelsey Wheeler, a weekly newsletter supporting a community of women who share the best tips, products, routines, and advice to help you become the best version of yourself.

• Sam’s Seven, a weekly list of 7 things that art director and stylist Sam Kidd Shelton is eyeing, buying, reading, and recommending.

I took everything I have learned from a half century of serious travel and put all my travel tips into one document for easy reading and sharing. Let me know what I missed in 50 Years of Travel Tips. — KK

Each of these short quips contain bookfulls of wisdom. — KK

• The world is a museum of other people’s passion projects. — John Collison

• If you are like most people, then like most people, you don't know you're like most people. ― Daniel Gilbert

• I oscillate between thinking I am crazy, and thinking I am not crazy enough. — Joyce Carol Oates

• The cause of death is birth. — David Hockney

• When dreaming, imagine success. When preparing, imagine failure. — James Clear

• Today is the worst AI will ever be. — Alex Irpan

• We are never definitely right; we can only be sure we are definitely wrong. — Richard Feynman

• The things you do badly are as much part of your style as the things you do well. — Martin Scorsese

• Self employment is a never-ending contest between the world’s worst manager and the world’s laziest employee. — Daniel Akst

• If you want new ideas, read old books. — Shane Parrish

• I’m thinking of Leonard Nimoy’s spiritual journey from writing I Am Not Spock (1975) to writing I Am Spock (1995). This is a journey we all must make. — Tim Kreider

• This present moment was once the unimaginable future — Stewart Brand

This web tool will help you stretch your time off by identifying all the government holidays in your country and highlighting the best weeks in the year to schedule your vacation. — CD

This short wordless video features a dozen or so kitchen tips, all new to me. Most of them are practical. I've already tried the lettuce-chopping technique and I'm not going back to the way I used to do it. — MF

The Dash Rapid Egg Cooker ($19) is incredibly easy to use and allows me to make anywhere from 1 to 6 hard-boiled eggs at a time. I often crave hard-boiled eggs in the moment, when I don’t have the time to boil them on the stove and then let them sit, so I appreciate how fast and convenient it is. Plus, it's lightweight and compact, making it easy to store in my cupboard alongside other kitchen tools without taking up too much space. — CD

The strangest book I own is the Secret Museum of Mankind. It is a thick book of a thousand grainy black and white photos of tribal people taken over a hundred years ago. The fuzzy photos show costumes and dress, strange tattoos and scarifications, topless women, bizarre religious rituals, cruel punishments, and esoteric practices of cults. The book has no author, no credits, no copyrights, no page numbers, and has the appearance of being reproduced many times without permission. There’s no text in the book except for short unreliable captions that are dated and full of prejudices of that time. I keep coming back to the photos which capture worlds long gone. Despite its titillating gaze, you can see the texture of everyday life for most people with unvarnished realism in a world before electricity, coal, and manufacturing—all revealed with a directness I have not seen published elsewhere. The book is most useful to anyone interested in clothes and fashion as every bit of clothing here was handmade and custom. While used copies are not hard to find, a good digital version has been scanned by Ian Macky, with added index and image grid, and is free here. — KK

A friend shared this guide of bite-sized tips that blend Japanese cultural wisdom and practical life hacks. Examples:

• Always follow the rules: Japan loves rules. Suffocating? Yes, but it makes the machine run smoothly. “People love to follow rules here,” Tokyo-based producer Kaori Oyama says. “It can be tiring, but at the same time it means that generally you know what to expect.”

• Enjoy the silence: Tokyo might be home to nearly 14 million people, but apart from the jingles you’ll hear at the train stations and in the convenience stores, it can be surprisingly quiet. “Very few people speak on the trains,” says Mr Paul McInnes, senior editor of Tokyo Weekender magazine, who has lived in the city since 2000. “It’s a wonderful way to have some quiet space and think about your day.”

— MF

I sent this UGG oversize sherpa scarf to a friend in the Rocky Mountains, and their enthusiastic response convinced me it was the perfect gift. The dimensions (77" L x 11" W - think wearable blanket) proved ideal for high-altitude living, where temperatures swing dramatically throughout the day. What makes it special besides the size is the material—it's exceptionally plush and warm without being heavy or bulky. — MF

The series Shogun streaming on Hulu/Disney+ deserves the many awards it won for great entertainment. It’s one version of a Japanese “game of thrones” What really captivated me was the impeccable historical realism and sense of immersion into ancient Edo period Japan. For instance, the show climaxes with poetry competitions. It is loosely based on historical people and events. The cast is Japanese speaking Japanese with English subtitles. The first season has 10 episodes with two more seasons in development. Well done! — KK

I Don't Have Spotify is a simple tool that quickly converts song links from Spotify, YouTube Music, Apple Music, Deezer, or SoundCloud to another preferred streaming service. This is particularly useful for sharing music with friends who have strong preferences against certain platforms. — CD

One of the best American storytellers of all time was the radio host Jean Shepherd who appeared on a New York City AM station (WOR) for 3 decades, during the 1950s, 60s and 70s. Every weekday night he did a humorist monologue of stories from his boyhood in a steel-mill town, rants about city life, and tall tales about everyday life – and nothing was pre-scripted! A tireless raconteur, Shep wrote the classic movie Christmas Story, about a kid getting a BB gun for Christmas. Many of his shows were taped over the static airways by listeners, and about 500 are now available online at The Jean Shepherd Show archive. Jerry Seinfeld claims he learned how to do his comedy about little things listening to Jean Shepherd stories. — KK