April Roundup and Monthly Musings
Why I'm climbing steep hills every week; being polite to your AI; and is Telepathy real?
Welcome to monthly musings! This is a once per month email (not my usual programming), where I share random things that have tickled my fancy over the past four weeks. Some will be related to the content of this newsletter, and others…well…won’t be.
Hope you enjoy a little glimpse into my world!
Dear Readers,
With the Easter holiday slap bang in the middle of the month, I’ve probably only been able to do about 2 weeks’ worth of work.
I did however discover that my 6 year old Bean (not his real name) really enjoys hiking! This is music to our ears, because we did enjoy a lot of hikes before having children.
When I asked him what it was about hiking that he enjoyed the most, he responded with “climbing the steep hills”.
Needless to say, we’ve been doing a lot of hill climbing this month, and it was a great reminder just how quickly you can improve your fitness walking (or sprinting) up steep hills.
It reminds me of the show about the Blue Zones, and how people living in mountainous regions like Sardinia live significantly longer and healthier lives. They often reach age 100 at rates far above the global average.
Aside from Sardinia, some of the other places mentioned in the show were:
Okinawa, Japan
Ikaria, Greece
Nicoya Peninsula, Costa Rica
Loma Linda, California (Seventh-day Adventist community)
What do steep hills have to do with it?
In mountainous or steep, hilly landscapes like Sardinia and Ikaria, inhabitants often:
Walk uphill daily to visit neighbours, fields, or shops
Tend to livestock or gardens located on uneven terrain
Live in multi-level homes or villages built on slopes
This natural form of exercise:
Improves cardiovascular health
Builds muscle and bone strength
Keeps body weight in check
Supports balance and agility, reducing fall risk as people age
Crucially, this physical activity isn’t seen as “exercise” , it’s just part of everyday life, which means long-term consistency without conscious effort.
We’ve now decided that we want to do a steep family hill hike once a week. I’m looking forward to the challenge!
An interesting podcast I’ve been listening to:
The Telepathy Tapes
This documentary dives into the mind-bending idea that some nonspeaking autistic people might be communicating telepathically - blurring the lines between science, belief, and the unexplained.
If you love a good mystery, you might enjoy it too!
An interesting fact I learned:
A single query in ChatGPT uses enough energy to power a lightbulb for “about 20 minutes”.
I’ve always used “please” and “thank you” with ChatGPT, so that I’m in it’s good books just in case AI does take over the world one day.
But it turns out that I’m not alone. According to TechRadar, which cited a report by Future, 67% of Americans regularly say "please" and "thank you" when speaking to chatbots. Of those, 55% believe it’s the ethical thing to do. Another 12% admitted they do it to avoid offending AI - just in case machines become self-aware.
My latest read is:
The Almanack of Naval Ravikant: A Guide to Wealth and Happiness
I first heard of Naval Ravikant (the millionaire entrepreneur and investor) a few weeks ago. He kept getting quoted everywhere, so I thought I must read his book. This particular book is written by Eric Jorgenson, and it collects and curates Naval's wisdom from Twitter, Podcasts, and Essays over the past decade.
A couple of my favourite quotes so far are:
If you’re evenly split on a difficult decision, take the path more painful in the short-term - that path has long-term gain associated with it.
You don’t get rich by spending your time to save money. You get rich by saving your time to make money.
What interesting things have you been up to in the last month?
Here are some of the productivity focused AI projects I’ve built this month:
This AI agent can speak multiple languages on the same call! Perfect for global projects and events!
A simple email automation that can manage a group mailbox receiving hundreds of queries a day, and personalise a response to them instantly! Get the blueprint here.
That’s all for this months’ musings. Have a wonderful May!
If you enjoyed this post, please hit the 🤍 to let me know!
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This months’ articles in case you missed them:
5 ways to skyrocket your focus before Easter
3 steps to reveal free time lurking in your week
Teetering on the edge? 7 awesome parent-approved nanobreaks
This surprising gym supplement actually makes your brain better