8-Bit Newsletter, Vol. 7 (New Year Edition)
Paying homage to the utilitarian roots of the Not That You Asked Newsletter
Welcome back and happy new year you filthy animals,
I recently returned home from the annual pilgrimage to see friends and family back in the States over the holidays. I skipped the tradition last year for an incredible Irish wedding, but this year I flew into San Francisco.
My sister and her fiance, Aaron, hosted our whole family over Christmas at their new house in SF. After a few beautiful days of incredible meals, family walks, and family karaoke sessions, I flew into Chicago to see the fellas I grew up with. I couldn’t miss the annual boy’s trip two years in a row—TRADITION!
9 days, 5 flights, unlimited calories, and quality time with so many of my favorite people in the world. What a way to wrap up the year. It’s been an interesting year, a very difficult one in many ways, but I’ll wait to write the next book to dig into that.
For now, I’ll just say—welcome to all the new readers and thank you for being here. It has been a great year for the newsletter, so thanks for reading. Thanks for your support, and a special shout-out to the handful of paid subscribers who keep me motivated to keep writing fun and useful PXM content.
Consider upgrading to a paid account if you dig what I’m sharing. It’s very appreciated!
On with the newsletter!
8-Bit Newsletter’s name and format pay homage to the ugly but utilitarian roots of the Not That You Asked Newsletter. (Not that you asked…)
The original Gmail newsletter had this description:
I started this newsletter to direct you to corners of the internet that I like. Some will be corners I have created, others will be places I found and like. They will cover a gamut of topics, but three specifically:
Life in Puerto Escondido, and the occasional travel tale 🛫
Writing, Reading, & Memoirs 📖
Music (playing, listening, dancing, todos) 🎤
Trav Shares
My 2024 Pics Picks.
For the past 16 years, my best buddies from childhood and I have taken a trip to a lakehouse to spend the days between Xmas and NYE drinking whiskey, playing poker, screaming inside jokes, and catching up in a way that’s become very important to all of us.
As a part of the tradition, we each submit our 10 favorite songs of the year, then basically let that list of 120 or so songs run in the background the entire long weekend. Here are the top 10 songs of my year:
Eslabon Armado y Peso Pluma - Ella baila sola
Where the party at - Jagged edge
Cordae - Summer drop
Kim Churchill - Clarity
Rawayana - Dame un break
Boney M - Rasputin
The Kid Laroi - Girls
Dreggs - Places
Carin Leon - La Boda del Huitlacoche
Philip Baily - Easy Lover
Ca7riel y Paco Amoroso Tiny Desk
I put off watching this Tiny Desk as it gained traction, and if I’m being honest, it’s because I was being judgy. Their outfits are pretty ridiculous, and I incorrectly assumed I probably wouldn’t like music from a duo dressed like that. Holy shit was I wrong. Also, I’ve watched a few videos about their background, and I love a good childhood-friends-chasing-a-dream story.
Rawayana Tiny Desk
This was one of my other favorite Tiny Desks of the year, and his most recent album “Quien trae las cornetas” is so damn good. It’s 22 incredible songs. Put it on the next time you’re cooking, cleaning, driving, or just vibing.
Five Reasons Trump Was Reelected That Nobody Is Talking About
This was my attempt to process what happened with this election. It’s gotten a warm reception and was passed around a bit on Medium. Check it out if you want to get poly-charged!
Medium Member link (please use this one if you are a member!)
Friend link (the one that’s free for everyone, but helps me much less on the platform)
Lonesome Dove—the best book I’ve ever read
I wrote an entire article and got a tattoo about a book I read.
My 2025 Reading Recap and Top 5 Books of the Year
It’s now the third year I’ve written up a reading recap and best of blog at the start of the year. It’s a fun way for me to look back and process my booklist from the previous year, and then to pick my top reccos. Lonesome Dove is certainly one, but find the others with the link below.
The Good Whale
The newest podcast series by Serial is about the whale that starred in Free Willy. It’s an unbelievable true story about a gigantic animal who we all know.
Not That Anyone Asked Travel Memoir
I’m working hard on an audiobook version that I should hopefully have ready to share in the next few months. I’m using a small studio here to make sure the recording is up to Audibles standards and to create something that matches the books quality. It’s my main creative Q1 project this year.
If you haven’t read the book yet, GET YOUR COPY HERE!
If you have read the book, thank you! You can use the same link above to leave a review if you haven’t taken the time to do that. It’s very appreciated!
Sostenible_PXM 💧
We have our big annual clean-up and volunteer BBQ celebration this month on January 19th. We’ll be cleaning up the streets of La Barra and then hosting a BBQ and party with free food and drinks for the volunteers at my place!
Puerto friends, follow along @sostenible_pxm for more info, but go ahead and mark your calendar for the afternoon of the 19th!
Also, we’re working on a gorilla campaign to spread the word about our free water refill network. The plan is to slap these babies everywhere. The QR code opens directly to the map of the network.
Sobreluna Update
We just sent out our last quarterly investor update of the year a few weeks ago. Below are some of the project stats we shared, but the headline is that we’re cooking with gas! We’ve secured the majority of funding we need to finish the construction, there are around 20 guys on the site daily, and we’re pushing hard for an April opening.
Project stats:
103 shares accounted for (7 shares to be sold in round 2 [2025] at a slightly higher price)
94% funded (last 6% to be raised in 2025 in a second round)
~78% constructed
63 total shareholders
New target soft opening is April, 2025
Bob King Memorial Advice Section
I’m addicted to my phone and so are you… assuming you’re in the 99% of humans who use social media and have endorphins. It’s a tricky subject, because we’re all addicted, and it’s not fun to acknowledge or wrestle with that truth. For most of us, our screen time data is disturbing, yet we go back to the well every time our friend leaves the table to go to the bathroom for 5 minutes.
Daily, I’m guilty of picking up my phone for a specific reason, then 10 minutes later thinking why the fuck did I grab my phone?
I’m trying to tango with this truth, so I started putting my phone to bed at night in its own room. Every night after midnight, I put my phone on the charger in the kitchen, and then finish watching or reading whatever I am being entertained by. I started doing this in November, and it’s made a huge impact on my sleep and overall health.
I’ve firmly decided—my phone needs its own space.
Before November, I charged my phone near my bed at night. I imagine this is what most of you do. It’s what I did for nearly two decades.
The problem for me with this setup was that several times a week I would have a late-night thought that spurred me to grab my phone. A worry about the next day, an unanswered question, or an entirely random thought.
My phone would whisper to me from the nightstand I know the answer, pick me up! So I would. Then 10 minutes later I would think Why am I on my phone, it’s 1:30 in the morning!? Now my phone sleeps in the kitchen, and I sleep much better.
Imagine it’s a talking hamster. Would you let a hamster sleep on your nightstand if every 10 minutes it was like, Hey, did you ever answer that question about the meeting tomorrow? Hey, hey you… remember that girl you had a crush on from high school? Want to look at a photo of her now? I wonder if it’s supposed to rain tomorrow, you want to check?
It was weird at first (I think I experienced low-key separation anxiety), but I strongly recommend giving this idea a shot. I know I’m not the first to suggest it, but I encourage you to consider tucking your phone into bed every night in a different room like a cute little hamster who won’t shut the fuck up.
Pheatured Photo(s)
