Week in Review | 07
The beginning of a low-tech experiment, a vacation packing list, a valuable style lesson I learned this week, and more...
I recently shared some of my thoughts on having a tech-focused career, but craving a lower tech personal life. I’ve felt this way for years, so it’s nothing new, but admittedly I haven’t found a way to make it work without maintaining the essential factor of simplicity that I crave in basically everything I do.
This week I decided to embark on a 30 day experiment using my Light Phone II1 exclusively as my personal cell phone, and using my iPhone the way I use my laptop — connect it to WiFi when I’m intentionally choosing to work, and then use the necessary apps to do what I need to do, and then put it away.
Why am I making life complicated like this? Wasn’t the iPhone created to simplify things? The truth is, I’ve always felt like as much as I love to use my iPhone and feel more productive when I have it, my mind is definitely much clearer the less I use it. My goal is to create a slower pace during my off hours, as well as more space for deeper and more creative thought (necessary for my career!!), and even some hobbies like reading (or possibly even sewing or finally practicing my Spanish skills again).
I’ll definitely report back on how it goes!
Thought of the Week
What I Packed for 3 Days in Mexico
We just got back from a few days in Mexico and I’m sharing everything I packed for our getaway to celebrate our friend’s 40th birthday. As you’ll see in the post, I stuck to a brown and black color palette, plus a touch of olive green.
What I Wore This Week
This week I learned an important lesson about my personal style — I do not like to wear tight pants. I made the critical error of wearing my straight leg jeans to work this week, and they were so distracting to wear all day because I could not stop thinking about how much I wished I had on loose jeans. I historically have loved those pants, so there’s a chance it was just one of those days when a little thing was driving me crazy, but I think there’s more to it! I think over the past year, I’ve leaned more and more into the comfort side of my personal style. While I always love to keep an elevated vibe, I’m realizing comfort is really important to me. Without it, my outfit becomes a distraction to my life instead of being an element of self-expression that sets me up for success in my day.
I’ll share this week’s looks on Tuesday, but until then, here’s what I wore last week (plus my outfits from Mexico!) This mini dress was a surprising winner. Super short? Yes. Soft & stretchy? Very. Ultimately I loved it!
What I’m reading, plus some favorite posts this week…
The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron
Anna O by Matthew Blake
The Big AI Risk Not Enough People Are Seeing | “Algorithms are now tooled to help you develop basic life skills that decades ago might have been taken as a given: How to date. How to cook a meal. How to appreciate new music. How to write and reflect. Like an episode out of Black Mirror, the machines have arrived to teach us how to be human even as they strip us of our humanity. We have reason to be worried.”
Why Are We Buying Clothes For Lives We Don't Have? | A great read with practical tips for how to stop buying what you don’t need and get realistic about the clothes you need for your real life activities.
Finding Your Personal Style: Part 1 | “The good news is that having a grasp on your personal style means a wardrobe that fills you with excitement rather than dread, no longer being in a constant state of wanting or holding out for the outfit that will make you feel like a better version of yourself, and feeling completely in sync with what you wear and like your clothes are the perfect expression of you who are.”
How to Break Up with Your Phone | “The trouble is, of course, none of us can opt out of this contract that we never signed that says we are now all connected to each other 24/7. No wonder everyone is so stressed out all the time. Usually when we subscribe to something, we can unsubscribe, but how do we unsubscribe from what is now the new normal which emphasises hyperconnectivity at every turn?”
Have a great long weekend!
xx
Natalie
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My husband had a Light phone and while he loved being low tech the phone itself didn’t work. He wasn’t receiving texts or calls after months of using it. He contacted the company and they reimbursed him so something to keep in mind if that happens to you. Now he has an Apple Watch which he likes because he’s accessible when needed but it’s annoying to scroll on it so he just doesn’t. He has an iPad for when he needs to use the internet.
Just discovered your Substack Natalie and I'm loving it!! Thank you so much for the shout out xx