What I’m up to - May 2024 - Philip I. Thomas

Here's my monthly newsletter about what I'm up to, which I send in place of social media.

What I did in April

Cat's out of the bag - the "Shenanigans" I referenced in March and April are revealed. I eloped and got married in a small village in Mexico about six weeks ago. Text or email me for photos and more details.
Took some French lessons at the FIAF in NYC. It was a fun experiment, but I unfortunately don't think I have the time or headspace to continue them. Pronunciation was more subtle than I expected.
I've been leaning into more intentionally analog habits, with single-purpose notebooks a at the core. Instead of doing most of my daily writing + notes in Day One or Obsidian, I'm mostly just carrying a stack of these Leuchtturm1927 notebooks.
Waited four hours to go to a Noma pop-up in NYC. I enjoyed chatting with their head of production about how they apply koji techniques to make vegan garums.
Rewrote Booklet's docs and overhauled its member management tools.
Started a three-month experiment in eating a plant-based diet. It's been surprisingly easy and enjoyable. I've been eating a lot of Bottas-inspired porridge, Rancho Gordo beans, rices, lacto-fermented vegetables (I had made a lot of fermented daikon), and Noma's vegan xo sauce and other projects.

Things to share

Articles: We need to rewild the internet. Adulting fast and slow. LARPing your job. Bicycle use now exceeds car use in Paris. Mechanics of a water fountain button.
Music: Promises. Various sets at Aimé Leon Dore.
Podcasts: How I Write - Founder of Levels on building a writing culture was fantastic. Just a spec.
Videos: Thom Browne on the Business of Fashion.
Trends: I've been interested in wind-powered shipping since reading Silo's cookbook, and it seems to be going more mainstream. I think the Apple Vision Pro is going to lead to an increase in lasik surgeries.

Plans for May

I have a couple of podcasts coming out - get updated by subscribing at podcast.contraption.co
Building out Booklet's API and adding more functionality there

Where I'll be