The Weekly Review - Issue 11

I’m back as promised. There is a bit to unpack this week.

Sticking with Ulysses for writing

I was on the fence over what tool I would be using for my writing since I knew my Ulysses subscription was coming to an end. £39.99 per year for Ulysses could be re-invested in an app that has a one-off payment, such as iA Writer.

Other than repeated payments, I am not happy with Ulysses text checker called Revision. It scans the text and provides suggestions for US customers. I’m English, so the suggests for where commas should be used not relevant. It’s OK for now. However, I am going to start using British grammar standards because I want to make sure I am using the correct grammar for work, home and blogging.

Anyway, Ulysses offered a repeating subscription for £19.99 (50% off). I believe this offer was given because they saw I had cancelled my subscription. I was genuinely unsure what I was going to do because I don’t feel I have got the best out of Ulysses this year. I believe it is time to master the app and see how I feel about Ulysses next year.

X (Twitter) is TOXIC

I try to avoid political, tribal and trivial content on social media. Unfortunately, a lot has happened in the past two weeks (some could say months) that has got my back up.

It’s got to the point where the mainstream media and Twitter are both as bad as each other. I’ve had enough, so I will be avoiding both as much as possible. My mind needs calm, positivity and growth, not hatred.

At least I have Mastodon, where I have curated a positive space on the internet. There’s also the Discord for Twos as well as Twos World. Both of them are great places to interact with amazing people. There are actually some great places on the internet. It is all about making the mindful decision to say no to what doesn’t line up with your values.

Kindle Unlimited

I am due to go on abroad at the end of the month. What better time to trial Amazon’s Kindle Unlimited subscription for two months. I’m only trying it out because it is free. If I chose to continue with the subscription (I’m not), it would cost me £9.49 per month.

Kindle Unlimited provides you with access to a limited collection of books, magazines, and audiobooks. It is truly impressive. To be honest, Amazon offers something I believe is great value for money. Up to twenty ebooks can be downloaded to your Kindle app or Kindle device and returned when you have finished reading the book. Although some books might be missing from the collection, there is plenty to read.

I am listening to one audiobook, Truth Truth Lie, as well as skimming through multiple magazines. I’ve not read much on my Kindle Paperwhite because my wife has made the most of the service. She has read four books in one week, and she is keen to read a lot more over the following two months. I guess I will stick with the magazines and eBooks on my iPad for now.

Articles

• It’s Time to Support Sustainable Software by Supernotes
• Olympics 2024: five things elite athletes can teach us about staying motivated and managing stress at work by The Conversation
• 11 Ways to Boost Oxygen and Live Longer (Increasing VO2 Max) by Dr.Berg

Media

7 Personal Finance Principles Made Easier Through Minimalism by Joshua Becker

I subscribe to Joshua’s YouTube channel, and his advice is a good reminder of how minimalism can help you live a better life. His principles in this video are good starters. Avoid all debt as much as possible because opportunities will start to open up with the money you save.

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See you next week for another weekly review. As always, thank you for taking the time to read my post.

Mark @ CodeMacLife

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