JETS JOURNAL - #066
January 28, 2025
Hi All!
Here is your weekly round up of what I’m pondering and exploring. Feel free to forward along to a friend if you think they might enjoy.
To the 74 people who read this every week
I have 148 subscribers to my newsletter. Of those 148, there’s roughly 50% of you who open my emails and read about what I have to say each week. That’s 74 human beings, one of which includes you, who show up every week. I’ve visualised those numbers below so you can see how many people that is for yourself.
It’s weird to admit, but I enjoy creating and sharing things with the 74 of you more than getting millions of views on a short. I’ve had more people reach out personally from my newsletter for genuine reasons, then I have from videos that have gone viral.
This way of creating and sharing with less of you, feels like a much healthier and more rewarding way to express myself online, because to me, it’s about having the right people in your life, not all of them.
Apple Cider Vinegar
After inhaling ash in LA, a long flight home, and an eight hour drive to the Australian Alps for a work opportunity, I lost my voice and was unable to speak. Having no voice made it especially hard when trying to communicate with the scientists I was working with in the mountains.
I had to resolve my problem quickly, if I wanted to properly contribute to the team I was collaborating with, so I called the one person I knew could rely on, my mum. She recommended I drink Apple Cider Vinegar, so that’s exactly what I did.
I personally like the flavour, but most wouldn’t since it tastes like your drinking a bag of salt and vinegar chips with an apple thrown into the blender. Aside from the taste, I took a small shot the size of the cap, in the morning and before bed, and within a few days, my voice was back, and my throat was feeling much better.
Apparently (I can’t confirm yet) Apple Cider Vinegar is like a super food/ drink I guess, that can heal many kinds of sicknesses and promote good health. I will continue taking my shot in the morning and before bed, and update you if I see any other effects.
How I Write
Writing for me has been a powerful tool for processing, documenting, and expressing. To me writing is another form of thinking. It forces you to collate those thoughts bubbling around inside your head and pour them out onto the page into something somewhat coherent. I write across multiple mediums and will explain each of them below:
The Newsletter: What you’re reading here is where I document five things I find interesting every week. If you wanted, you could also create your own lists for each of your own weeks. The way I do it, is, whenever I come across or think of something interesting, I note it down in my notes app in my phone, and expand on it later when I write up the newsletter. It’s been a great way to keep track of where my interests go, and where I’m currently at.
Private Journal: My Journal is where I write the more intimate details about my life, and use it as a tool to process whatever I might be going through. My journal is much less structured then the newsletter, and is more like a daily brain dump of whatever is on my mind. Getting whatever that might be on paper, helps me to focus on right now, as I leave whatever might be stressing or worrying me on the page.
The Novel: This thing has been the longest project I’ve ever worked on, and am still continuing to work on. When I originally wrote the first draft, I woke up every morning and wrote a 1000 words for 75 days straight. No matter what I made sure to get my words in, even if I was out camping in the mountains, I typed a hundred words into my phone. Right now, the book is hibernating after finishing the second draft, so I can regain some distance again from the story, before diving back in for the next round of revisions. This form of writing has helped me to explore a subject matter I’m passionate about, much more deeply.
Short Stories: I’m yet to share any of my fictional work with you but it’s one of my favourite ways to create. As mentioned above, I’m working on the novel, which means I can’t and won’t be starting any other long form projects for the time being. Which is where the short story comes in during these breaks I take away from the novel. I can generally write one of these in a couple hours to a day, and they help me to stay creative and keep my writing sharp. I enjoy being able to experiment with story ideas in short form, before committing to an idea long term. As of now, I’m keeping these short stories private with intentions of publishing a collection of them together, or having select stories published in literary magazines like The Paris Review, or Granta. Although, this isn’t a focus for me right now, as all I want to do is continue refining my writing and storytelling abilities, regardless of if people like it, because first and foremost, I’m doing this for me.
General Notebook: Last but not least, is my pocket notebook. Here is where I scribble down random ideas, sketches, to-do lists and several other miscellaneous pieces of information.
Finding Presence
Regardless of what happened, and regardless of what’s going to happen, all we will ever have is here, right now.
A Comic I Liked
Here is a comic I found on X I liked
Hope everyone enjoys their week.
Love,
Jet Williams