To name 2023 an eventful yr can be a fairly large understatement. Over the previous twelve months, I traveled so much, labored so much, and tried to course of (as all of us did) quite a lot of distressing information from around the globe. I additionally lastly caught COVID — like every week in the past on the time of this writing; Merry Christmas to me — so apologies if I am not probably the most eloquent in my reflections on the previous yr.
Nonetheless, so much occurred, so let’s dive proper in. Listed below are my Prime 10 issues from 2023, starting from tech and journey to music and, properly, scotch whisky.
I began utilizing the Pixel 7a
Regardless of my curiosity in sharing offers and providing shopping for recommendation to our readers, I have a tendency to make use of my gadgets till they’re fully out of date and falling aside. Whereas I will not say that my trusty Google Pixel 6 has reached that time simply but, it has positively began to decelerate — which led me to lastly check out the Google Pixel 7a.
As my colleague, Nick Sutrich, acknowledged in his Pixel 7a evaluation, “There’s nearly no motive to purchase every other cellphone,” and I might should agree. The 7a (which you should purchase for fairly low cost, by the best way) takes all the things that I beloved about my Pixel 6 and makes it even higher. There is a noticeable increase in efficiency, the show and software program work superbly, and the entire Pixel-exclusive digicam software program makes me really feel like knowledgeable photographer once I’m touring. Talking of which…
I went to Iceland (once more)
This yr additionally marked the second time that my associate and I traveled the Ring Highway in Iceland. This route circles the complete nation and, in our case, no less than, takes about 10 days to finish if you wish to take your time. You go by infinite waterfalls, canyons, black sand seashores, and glaciers, with numerous hikes that allow you to discover the otherworldly countryside alongside the best way.
There’s nothing fairly like traversing historic lava fields behind a meandering flock of Icelandic sheep or strolling subsequent to a glacier within the footsteps of the island’s first Viking settlers. Plus, there’s a great deal of nice seafood and beer, and when you go in the summertime, there are nearly 24 hours of daylight (extra time for actions!).
The primary time we took the route was in 2019, and we camped the complete time. This time, we stayed in small inns and cabins, and we put aside a while to enterprise into the distant Westfjords for just a few days. It was enjoyable repeating the identical journey and reflecting on how a lot we have modified over the previous 4 years whereas the island itself stays seemingly unmoved (though the latest volcanic exercise proves in any other case). A bunch of my favourite locations on earth might be present in Iceland, and I might counsel everybody make the time to go to in the event that they ever get the possibility.
I lastly obtained some wi-fi headphones
I’ve some fairly robust opinions about music, which makes it stunning how lengthy it took me to lastly get a pair of wi-fi headphones. Do not get me flawed, I’ve every kind of wired headphones, nevertheless it simply by no means appeared essential to stress about un-music-related options like lively noise cancellation or hands-free calling. That’s till I used to be cooking with headphones on, and a dangling wire despatched a pile of dishes crashing to the ground.
Now I personal a pair of Sony WH-1000XM4, and I am by no means going again. Whether or not I am cooking, studying, or sitting on a aircraft, my headphones include me. The lively noise cancellation blocks out undesirable noise once I must focus, and the sound high quality completely destroys no matter I appreciated about my Pixel Buds (the place did I even put these?). My wired Audio-Technica headphones are nonetheless the go-to once I’m listening to music at my desk, however in every single place else, it is all concerning the XM4.
I purchased a Pela case
Telephones simply hold getting increasingly more sturdy, so once I determined to purchase a case for my new Google Pixel 7a, I targeted extra on fashion and sustainability than protectiveness alone. I ultimately got here throughout an organization known as Pela Case. Whereas they will not be as rugged as your Spigen and Thinborne varieties, my Pela Case appears to work effective in opposition to the occasional tumble, and extra importantly, it is probably the most sustainable cellphone case I’ve ever used.
Along with being drop-tested for as much as 6 ft, Pela instances are smooth, fashionable, and constructed from 100% compostable supplies. The packaging can also be completely plastic-free, and the corporate has been licensed as carbon impartial and a B Corp. They could be a bit dearer than a budget plastic stuff you could find on Amazon, nevertheless it’s a sturdy cellphone case that I really feel good utilizing, and it is one it is best to contemplate when you’re on the lookout for a Pixel 7a case.
I listened to quite a lot of vinyl data
Though I work for a tech information web site and love my devices, I am a little bit of a Luddite relating to some issues. Living proof: my emotions about music. I deeply treasure the full-length album as a standalone artwork type, and whereas I do not thoughts the occasional mixtape, I am not too comfortable concerning the music business’s shift in direction of algorithm-based playlisting and vibe-based background music (not to mention the fractions of a cent given out to artists in change for his or her life’s work). Sorry, tangent over.
My level is that I really like the expertise of sitting down and listening to a full album back and front, which suggests I additionally love listening to vinyl data. My Audio-Technica ATLP120XBT turntable is one among my most prized possessions, and in 2023, I dug by quite a lot of bins at report shops and storage gross sales and located quite a lot of nice data.
I additionally noticed quite a lot of dwell music
As you might need seen, just about each musical act has been touring over the previous few years, presumably to make up for the lack of earnings through the worst days of the COVID-19 pandemic. This implies I’ve had loads of alternatives to see a few of my favourite bands dwell, from Sigur Rós on the Greek Theatre in Berkeley to Heilung at Purple Rocks. It is an costly interest, however you solely dwell as soon as, so I plan to see many extra dwell reveals in 2024.
I spent quite a lot of time with my cat
That is Juniper.
She’s 7 years outdated, polydactyl (so she’s obtained some additional toes), and fairly shy to everybody however my associate and me.
For sure, she’s one among my high issues of the yr (and yearly, in fact).
I obtained kinda into Scotch
Relating to imbibing, I by no means discovered myself having fun with greater than the occasional craft beer or glass of crimson wine with dinner. I by no means obtained into bourbon like quite a lot of of us I do know, and making fancy cocktails at dwelling at all times felt like a trouble. That being stated, in some unspecified time in the future this yr, I ordered a dram of Laphroaig 10 at a bar right here on the town, and it blew my thoughts vast open.
Since then, I have been completely nerd-ing out over Scotch whisky, attempting the malts from numerous areas, studying concerning the distillation course of, and all that type of stuff. My associate and I are even speaking about taking a visit to Scotland in 2024. A pleasant pour of the correct whisky feels wealthy, smoky, and stuffed with historical past, like smelling a very good outdated guide.
My favourite whisky in 2023: Oban 14. Oban, ship me free stuff, and I will attempt to flip this web site into Whisky & Android Central.
I learn some good books
Talking of excellent outdated books, I lastly discovered extra time to learn this yr. As you most likely did not know, earlier than I began freelancing full-time and finally writing about tech at Android Central, I spent the higher a part of a decade working in and managing unbiased bookstores.
In that business, you get quite a lot of time to suppose, speak, and write about books, to not point out limitless entry to advance reader copies earlier than the titles hit retailer cabinets. As I drifted away from that enterprise, nonetheless, I discovered that I had a lot much less time to learn.
Fortuitously, whereas I am nonetheless not studying as a lot as I used to, I used to be capable of treatment {that a} bit in 2023. Listed below are some books I beloved this yr.
-“The Books of Jacob” by Olga Tokarczuk
-“Ka“ by John Crowley
-“Matrix” by Lauren Groff
-“On Earth We’re Briefly Attractive” by Ocean Vuong
-“Belief” by Hernan Diaz
-“Hild” by Nicola Griffith
-“HHhH” by Laurent Binet
-“The Hour of the Star” by Clarice Lispector
-“The Lord of the Rings trilogy” (For the primary time! Lastly!)
I lastly obtained COVID
And yep, as I discussed within the intro, I lastly obtained COVID. I made it nearly 4 years!
It’s kind of of a bummer that I will probably be spending the ultimate weeks of the yr caught inside with a sore throat, however that is simply the way it goes generally. It was nonetheless an eventful yr with loads of nice moments, and regardless of my unease concerning the upcoming election cycle and the infinite stream of troubling information coming from each course, I am feeling optimistic about 2024. On the very least, it needs to be one other fascinating yr.
