Happy holidays, !

Welcome to the last newsletter for the year! It's hard to believe that it's the end of another year but here we are! I'll be tweaking things here and there when it returns next year and am super keen to hear your thoughts on what you liked/disliked this year. Easiest way is to drop me a line!

As always, a shameless request! Could you forward this newsletter to just 3 people that you think would like one of the articles? It helps A LOT! If you're the friend reading this, click the link below to join! Glad to have you here!

Week in the life

The end of year rush is in full swing. I'm writing this in between cases while were waiting for patients to come from the wards or be admitted. If I seem to jump around a bit, that's why!

This week has been the "right" kind of busy: I've had fun lists with friends that have been challenging but not ridiculously stressful. Instead of waiting til 2023, I had already started implementing some of what I intended to do already including limiting the number of extra on-calls and extra shifts. I can already see it making a bit difference in the overall levels of stress...

Finally, the 2023 calendars have arrived! I've shipped out 3 batches already so if you've ordered already, it should already be on the way. I wanted to have this out weeks ago, but there were design issues that I mentioned in previous emails, printer malfunction and even getting it delivered from 1 suburb away took a while! At least they're here one project is complete...

The print quality this time around has been great though! Worth the wait!

I'm looking over the data on what people seem to like about this newsletter and will be making some changes next year. More on that over on the blog...

Creative update

2023 Wall Calendar

It's finally, physically here!

After weeks of delays the calendar has arrived and I gotta say I'm impressed with the print quality even more so than last year. I've been shipping them off on the same day as orders arrive so hopefully they get to you all on time. Some people from overseas have also enquired about them - will have to look at postage separately but it'll like be pricey given how expensive fuel is these days!

If you're after one grab one soon so I can ship it out before the new year!

Gadgets/Tech

Since this is the last newsletter for the year, I thought I'd just list out my favourite products that I've loved this year:

• DJI Mini 3 Pro - Even though I have the bigger Mavic, the mini is just SO good and light!
• Kaweco Fountain pen - Compact, light but writes so well
• NuraTrue Pro - Just like the over ear headphones, but smaller. (there seems to be a theme to this list!)
• Manta Sleep Mask - Turns out I'm very sensitive to light and this is by far the best eye mask to help me sleep
• Fuji Instax Mini LiPlay - camera and polaroid printer in one!
• Samsung S22 Ultra - while I do get some freebies from Samsung, this isn't one of them. It has one of the best cameras and the best implementation of a stylus to take quick notes on any device.
• Surface Pro 8 - The Pro 9 is out now but this is probably the first time that I can say that the 8 was so good, I'll be sticking with it for a while longer!
• Heymix 65W GaN charger - Tiny and light but strong enough to power my Surface, phone, drone and more
• Oura sleep tracking ring - Initially got it for early covid detection but has become essential in making sure I'm well rested
• Nanopresso - tiny espresso maker. I've left one at work so I can brew my own coffee

Read

Who really invented the thumb drive?

When you think of modern innovations, what do you think of? I think iPhones/Teslas or even Palm Pilots back in the day, but I never really give a thought to the humble USB thumb drive that probably deserves way more of a mention. Just think of how often and how many you've had over the years. There were floppy disks and then suddenly, there were (and still are) thumb drives!

Here's a quick look at how they came about.

Did you know?

"Ultracrepidarian"

There's a word for someone who gives opinions beyond their knowledge

I love looking up origins of words and other random tid bits and found this earlier today. It sounds somewhat like an insult don't you think?

Quote I'm pondering

'There is nothing either good or bad but thinking makes it so.'

— William Shakespeare

Given it's the season of reflection, I was recounting all the good and bad that's happened this year when I stumbled upon this quote. Things happened this year, that's for sure, but "good" and "bad" are just labels that we put on things.

For example, let's say you're walking along and someone pushes you over, you'd say that's a bad thing. However, if they did it so you wouldn't be hit by a speeding car, you'd say that was good.

The specific event happened none the less, but it's in the way we attach the context that makes it a positive or negative event. Given all that's happened in the last few years, I've noticed that my trend has been to see things in the negative more often than not and that quote was a good reminder that, in fact, I get to choose the meaning to an extent and maybe I should opt for the positive...

On that note, that's it for this year for the newsletter. I'll definitely be changing things up here and there. I would love to know your opinions on what you liked/didn't like or don't bother reading? I find people seem to like to "catch up" on the events of the week on the blog and read the quotes. I'll tweak things to emphasise that over other things unless I hear otherwise.

Until then, stay safe, have a great festive period and a happy new year!

- Raffy

PS - You've read til down here?! Thank you! As a superfan, I'd love to know your opinion. Let me know with 1 click!

Sunday Surprise uses affiliate/referral links in the newsletter. This does not change the recommendation/verdict but may result in Photos by Raffy receiving a small commission and will be marked in orange. Non-affiliate links will appear as blue. Prices recorded may vary.