Pre-booked airport ridesI’ve used Welcome Pickups in Lisbon, Berlin, Madrid, and Paris, and it’s become my default airport-to-hotel solution. You book online before your flight, see the exact price upfront (usually comparable to Uber), and most importantly, a driver will be waiting for you right after luggage pickup with your name on a sign. They speak English and can help with your bags. They operate in over 350 destinations worldwide. It’s the small dose of certainty that makes arriving in a new city less stressful. (The link above gives you €5 off your first trip.) — MF Animated Guide to Feeling Through ArtThis 2-minute animated film blends art and therapy to guide viewers through somatic exercises for emotional regulation, especially when overstimulated or triggered in crowded spaces. Practices like resting your hands on your heart or stomach can create space for energy and also encourage it to move out of your body. These self-soothing techniques can be used when engaging with any creative medium or media, helping you to find calm and rootedness even in the busiest, most stressful environments. — CD Revealing readChina has 100 million gig workers, delivering food, sorting packages, driving ubers, barely making it. The diary of Hu Anyan, one of those gig workers, became a runaway bestseller in China. It has just been translated into English as “I Deliver Parcels in Beijing.” It is a richly detailed, unvarnished account of what life is like in the urban underclass of modern China. What makes it so readable is Hu Anyan’s indomitable spirit of always looking at the bright side despite horrifically unfair, unsafe, and illegal conditions. He recounts his misfortunes with empathy and impartial clarity. There are more people like him in China than the population of most countries. I don’t know of anything else that reveals the “real” texture of life in China from a distance as this book. — KK World Map of Human IdeasHere’s a person-made map listing the birthplaces of influential ideas that shaped civilization. More than 250 of the world’s greatest ideas and inventions, color-coded by fields of knowledge. It’s fun to explore and learn something new. — CD Best cameraI’ve been seriously photographing for 55 years and the best camera I’ve ever owned is the iPhone 17 Pro. The sensor is the clearest, most sensitive, most color true I’ve ever had. It has near infinite capacity and a great battery. And most important to me is its range of lenses including wide-angle and a new optical telephoto lens that zooms to 200mm equivalent. Awesome! The whole kit fits into my pants pocket so I always have my best camera at hand. I no longer use any other camera outside my studio. — KK Best online file converterMost online file converters are littered with ads and are sketchy about what they do with your files. But Vert, which is free and open-source, converts files directly on your computer, not a remote server (the exception is videos, which Vert deletes after an hour). It handles images, audio, video, and documents. The interface is clean and straightforward: drag your file, pick your format, done. — MF THIS ISSUE IS SPONSORED BY BROOKBrook is the first all-glass water fountain for cats and small dogs! Brook is the most hygienic, functional, and easy-to-maintain cat fountain – with minimal plastic, and all-glass parts that give a clear view to the water. And did we mention – it’s stunning? Recomendo Unclassified Ads work! Reach over 122,000 subscribers for just $200. UNCLASSIFIEDS For Supply Chain and Business Nerds: Did you know that Amazon offers free tours of their warehouses in USA & Canada? It’s a PR move, but also cool to see. New article on my personal blog: How to Tour an Amazon Fulfillment Center Warehouse. 9 Hidden Perks of Your Amazon Prime Membership. Are you taking advantage of your Amazon Prime perks? Amazon Prime offers much more than just free shipping! Discover 9 Prime benefits you should be using. Thinking of getting married in Italy, Portugal, Spain or Ireland? Peach Perfect Weddings makes it easy for couples to say “I do!” in Europe since 2014. We offer customizable all-inclusive packages and work with 200+ venues. Mention RECOMENDO for a surprise gift when you book I Ate 25 Healthy Protein Bars So You Don’t Have To. I did a very rigorous investigation into finding the very best healthy protein bar—and here are my top 5 recommendations (plus, runner-ups, alternatives, & a customizable spreadsheet): Best Healthy Protein Bars. Say Goodbye to Inbox Overload. Bulletproof Inbox ONLY lets approved senders land in your inbox. Everything else? Filtered to a review folder. Approve or block emails inside Gmail/Outlook—no new app, no new address. Filter noise, reclaim focus. Start your 30 day free trial today Get smarter about AI in 5 min. Our free newsletter makes you smarter about AI and teaches you how to leverage AI to become more productive. The Deep View is read by 450,000+ including professionals from OpenAI, Google, Meta, and Nvidia. Email Templates That Turn Subscribers Into Buyers: A collection of 15 proven copywriting templates you can use to get more sales, leads, and clients from your email list. See a free one here. Recomendo is an authentic, hand-crafted, human-written weekly newsletter that is free, but not cheap. Please consider supporting our work with a paid option, now at the low price of $45 per year. Paid subs enable us to keep making it free for others. Recomendo is published by Cool Tools Lab, a small company of three people. We also run the Cool Tools website, a YouTube channel and podcast, and other newsletters, including Gar’s Tips & Tools, Nomadico, What’s in my NOW?, Tools for Possibilities, Books That Belong On Paper, and Book Freak. Recomendo is copyrighted by Cool Tools Lab, LLC. Commissions may be earned from the links above. |
