Good afternoon! I’m still nursing my Café Bustelo Medium Roast from breakfast.
Here’s a brain dump of small things not worthy of full blog posts. Most of these thoughts started elsewhere online, but it always feels nice to keep your own thoughts on your own site.
Cracker Barrel has redesigned its logo and is redesigning their stores. (Apologies, I can’t find a news story about this that isn’t completely unhinged.) We eat breakfast there fairly often. WM is a member of their peg club! The prices are very reasonable and their crispy-edged pancakes are divine. My quibbles with the redesign aren’t about it being “woke”; rather, it’s the loss of another unique aesthetic to the drab shiplap machine. If I wanted eggs with a side of Millennial gray and Live/Laugh/Love signs, I’d go to Turning Point.
On the other hand, the new version of Cracker Barrel’s peg game has definitely softened up. In the old version, I’m pretty sure leaving three pegs meant you were “dumb” and four or more line made you an “ignora-moose.”
Yesterday I went on a spree of cancelling monthly Substack and Patreon subscriptions1 and unsubscribing from blog feeds. I realized something in the process: unless your writing voice is impeccable2, to keep me as a follower I need to relate to you on two out of your three main topics.
Example 1: You’re a full-time content creator with no kids, living in New Jersey, sharing relatable shopping content? I’m completely yours. I’ll follow your storefront *and* click your links. If you move to another region, fine –enjoy reading about new-to-me places! But if you also start linking to $500 sundresses, $800 shoes, and $149 candles, that’s no longer relatable. Suddenly I’m only clicking on the “this sweater is under $50!” links which makes me feel like I’m relegated to your clearance section. The disconnect grows if you put the non-shopping posts behind a paywall.
Example 2: You’re a parent, working full time in an office, over 45, and you’re writing about it? That’s two out of three, I’m here for you. I’ll read, relate, and click your affiliate links. But then you quit your job to become a full time content creator. All we have in common now is our age and that’s not enough to keep me.
An article linked earlier this week on Bluesky attempts to blame Canadians for Las Vegas’s economic slump. I don’t think they’re the problem. Let’s look at me3. I enjoy gambling — I really love it! — but I’m not rich. When was in Las Vegas in April for TNP’s annual conference, I couldn’t find a human-operated craps or roulette table with a minimum bet under $25. So I didn’t gamble at all. Not even a quarter.
The nearby hotel buffets were only open for breakfast and lunch and they were expensive. Drinks were $15+. Even though I could expense my dinners, everything cost too much money for the return. And I didn’t even have to pay for the room.
Earlier this week I tried Mountain Dew Baja Midnight expecting edgy and intense. Instead it tasted like a purple Necco wafer dissolved in club soda. I’ll stick with Diet Dr. Pepper.
And finally, RIP Tristan Rogers, aka General Hospital’s Robert Scorpio. You were my first wildly inappropriate crush, and quite possibly the first Australian man I ever saw on TV.
My coffee is finished, and now it’s time for Saturday chores: changing sheets, vacuuming, and a touch of garden cleanup. Enjoy your weekend!
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