Lately #001: Heavy Things, Noah Kahan, and Trying to Buy a Pillow Online

One thing I've always been is nosy (ask my parents). I want to know what's on your home screen, the latest gadget you've added to your office, and what show you're a few episodes into that’s sent you spiraling down the Reddit rabbit holes (looking at you, Severance).

There’s just something I find fascinating about what people are consuming and thinking about in any given moment. So naturally, I figure you’d want to hear mine, right?

Surely not. But you’re getting it anyway. Welcome to Lately, where I share what I’ve been into recently.

Reading: “Making Something Heavy”

I wish I could remember where I ran across Make Something Heavy, a piece by Anu Atluru, but it’s been sitting in my read later queue for a while. And after finally getting a chance to read it, it’s been pretty regularly top of mind.

Anu’s premise: we're creating more than ever, but most of it weighs nothing (ironically, I would describe what you're reading right now as light). The internet doesn't want heavy things. It wants fast, light, consumable, and forgettable. The modern content machine optimizes for output, not weight.

But Anu's point isn't just about the weight of the content, but rather its impact on the creator. Creation isn't just about output. It's a process of becoming. The best work shapes the maker as much as the audience.

I've been in various forms of content marketing for a while. Most of what I make is, by design, light. It's built to do a job and get out of the way. There's nothing wrong with that. But reading this made me sit with a question I don't ask myself enough: what's the heavy thing I'm trying to make?

I don't have an answer yet. But at the very least, it’s something I’m asking and thinking about with a little more regularity than before.

Listening/Watching: The Great Divide & Hoops

I'm not going to pretend that most everyone isn’t already listening to Noah Kahan. Stick Season was great. The Great Divide is tremendous. And he's everywhere.

And yet, I can’t get enough. I'll be doomscrolling Instagram, a reel surfaces with "Willing & Able" or "Dashboard," and I immediately want to open Apple Music and dive back in.

But because I can't give you something everyone already knows without adding something additional: I've also been locked into the NBA Playoffs. The first round has featured some great hoops (even if I’m annoyed that we already know OKC is running this back).

And while I have the mic: the Indiana Pacers, with a healthy Tyrese Haliburton, would've absolutely dog-walked this Eastern Conference. I said what I said.

Using: Tracking My Watchables Backlog

I have an embarrassing backlog of TV shows and movies I haven't watched (I blame my kids), so I'm always hunting for a good tracking app.

The one I'd been using for years stopped receiving updates, and most of the generic alternatives are just... fine. And as someone who nerds out about apps and aesthetically-pleasing UIs, I wanted something different.

Recently, I came across Showcase, an app for TV and movie tracking with episodic tracking, release countdowns, a "mood pick" feature, and a really great UI. Still early days in giving this a go, but cautiously optimistic this will make the rotation.

(Related: I’ll take all your show and movie recs, please and thanks)

Wild Card: In Search of a Good Night’s Sleep

My wife and I just got back from taking the kids to Disney, where we had a great time. But we also came home with an unexpected revelation: our pillows are bad.

We slept so well at the resort that we did what any reasonable person would and started Googling to find those pillows (turns out, we're not the only ones hunting for Disney resort pillows).

Part of it was probably the "Disney magic." Part of it was definitely park fatigue (my calves still haven't forgiven me for running up Monorail ramps with two kids in a stroller — iykyk). But one night back home confirmed it wasn't just exhaustion talking.

So now I'm on a mission. Currently looking at the Mellow Sleep Cloud Align Pillow — but man, buying a pillow online feels so hard? You can't feel it and the reviews are all over the place. Half of them seem to be written by people who've never experienced a good (or bad) pillow in their life.

If you have one you love, please let me know. I'm not above crowdsourcing this.

That's it for the first installment of whatever this is. Thanks for reading — and if you've got something you've been watching, reading, listening to, using, or sleeping on that you think I should know about, shoot me a note at hello@joetacosik.com or comment on LinkedIn.

Talk soon!