The Weekly Review 01-26

Hi, I'm Mark. In a recent post, I admitted I had somewhat neglected the writing and online space. It's true - I have been busy with work and life commitments. In the process of getting my life in order, I forgot about my hobbies, interests and connecting with others. I needed down time to refocus my attention and reduce the stress that was mounting up. The workload is still heavy. However, I want 2026 to be the year I reclaim my hobbies and take care of my health, wealth, well-being and future aspirations. My posts will reflect this. 

So, what to expect in the first post of 2026? 

• Returning online (and my failed social media challenge)
• My use of AI
• Moving away from the Apple Ecosystem

The Online Return

Last year, I posted I would be spending a year without social media. It hasn't worked out this way (I had a great time along the way). I subtly crept back into the online space to access information from brands and services I am using. All social media is accessed through a web browser on my MacBook, so there's no mindful doom scrolling on phone.

The other reason for signing up is to shamelessly plug on blog in order to give it more exposure than users stumbling across it. At present, I now have a Mastodon and X / Twitter account (see my About Me page for links). I also signed up to Discord to view the Twos app Discord channel, which I access every two weeks. I begrudgingly have WhatsApp for two personal group chats but I don't actively use this service.

There's absolutely no way I will go back to Facebook, Instagram or Threads. Two books made me well aware of the dark practices Meta take to manipulate their users - Careless People by Sarah Wynn-Williams and Ten Arguments For Deleting Your Social Media Accounts Right Now by Jaron Lanier. I recommend these books for those who want their eyes opening to the world we are living in now. 

Use of AI (thoughts)

I am going to be blunt here - AI is overrated right now. I've rarely been impressed with what I have used so far. How I use AI with my blog writing is to review what I have written, receive feedback and resubmit the post. What I won't be doing it getting AI to write the post for me. What would the point of blogging be if I am not the one doing the writing? That's like buying a snowboard and never going snowboarding! Generating a blog through AI is not a hobby. I am writing to pleasure, not profit. 

The whole AI bubble and increasing hardware prices (due to AI tech hoarding) has made me cautious of these companies even more. I'm not completely against the technology - I use AI in Craft, Twos and Voicenotes as well as Google Gemini 3 on my Chromebook. At work, we are using a secure AI platform called SLT AI. In addition, Chalkie is great for planning. 

For now, AI is a last resort. I plan to do things manually and choose AI when I want some clarity. The best use of AI so far was when I needed to troubleshoot some CSS and JavaScript bugs on a website I am building. 

App Agnostic update

With aging hardware and a focus on spending less, I started the process of moving away from the Apple ecosystem. It makes sense with the hardware I use listed on my Tools page. To say I’m not a fan of Apple’s Liquid Glass is putting it mildly. I prefer the minimalist opaque UI approach found on Android and Linux. This is why I started exploring alternative options, which allow me to have increased options to my hardware selections.

First up, I use Bullet for my events, tasks and notes. It is the closest thing to a digital bullet journal. The app is simple in function and design. I paid £79.99 for the lifetime pro version. I use it at home, on the go and at work. I can set tasks to be completed daily, weekly, monthly, including those towards my yearly goals. Repeating events and tasks are easy to set up. In addition, there's a cool habit tracker built in. Bullet replaced Twos as my primary place to write things down due to its robustness and markdown features. The app is also super cool for rapid logging. I'm sure I will give Bullet the review it deserves at some point. Bullet is also available offline on my Android tablet and Chromebook. I don't want to be limited to Apple devices only. 

I have also moved Proton's full suite of products, which I am sure I will write more about throughout the year. I'm slowly in the process of moving all my online accounts to my multiple Proton emails. The apps by Proton are improving each month. Just recently, Proton released their version of Excel. Now I can create E2EE documents and spreadsheets without Big Tech snooping on my data. 

For work, I am using Craft Docs more to organise my knowledge management data such as my research into special education needs. I feel super organised with my current NPQ SENCO course because Craft has helped me organise and distill the information I need to study. Adding videos and images into my documents has been a breeze, too. 

There's a lot more coming in terms of what I am replacing Apple services with but I will leave that for another day. What's important is I am able to use these apps and services across all of my devices. But to make it clear, I'm not anti-Apple. I still like a lot of their products. I simply want some flexibility in my digital ecosystem. 

Media

• Plur1bus (Apple TV) - It has been a long time since I was completely hooked on a TV series since Severance (also on Apple TV). Let me simply say I watched all nine episodes of Plur1bus season 1 over three days. I have not been hooked like this since Game of Thrones came out. You can watch the trailer here (which does not do the show justice). 
• Wabi Sabi by Beth Kempton (book) - Beth writes about the unspoken Japan cultural philosophy of Wabi Sabi. A principle that resonates with me greatly. It puts a label to something I personally believe in but I could never articulate. Find beauty in the imperfections and impermanence of life. The cracks in a teacup tell a story. Find joy in everyday moments, explore the physical world and take comfort from life not being perfect.

Links

• What Wabi-Sabi Really Means – More Than Minimalism (Zen to Manabi | YouTube)
• What is Wabi-sabi? A quick guide to understanding the unique Japanese aesthetic (IntoJapanWaraku | Article)
• I finally dropped iCloud and you should too (Sun Knudsen | YouTube)

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As always, thank you so much for reading. The Weekly Review is simply a place to gather thoughts, ideas, links, and recommendations — the kind of things I would have once shared on social media. Anyway, happy New Year. Have an amazing 2026.

Mark