Inspired by Ryan Moulton, I've started cataloging products which I love. I hope this list will benefit you. I'll keep it updated as I think of other things.

I am not affiliated with any of these companies, and none of the links are referral links.

Health

Avoiding microplastics and endocrine disruptors

I've written before about the science of #microplastics and #endocrine-disruptors . Here are some products that I use to reduce my intake of these chemicals:

• Bamboo spatulas.
• A water distiller.
• Stainless steel water bottle. I don't trust myself with glass ones. This one has no plastic in contact with water on the inside, although the metal threads do still make contact with plastic.
• Silk dental floss, metal tongue scraper, Bamboo tooth brushes.
• Pour over coffee set made of glass and metal.

Reducing airborne pathogens

I wrote about the possibility of defeating airborne illnesses in a previous post. These products help reduce airborne pathogens:

Far UV-C lamps

These can effectively sterilize air. For more information, this post on Far UV-C technology.

Air filters

Clean air reduces allergy symptoms and are good for overall health. MERV 13 filters are more effective than HEPA filters for filtering pathogens. MERV 13 filters already filter out small particles such as bacteria, spores, and smoke, and they are used in hospital surgery rooms.

HEPA filters filter even smaller particles, but they can't move as much air as MERV 13 filters. This because the smaller pores are harder to suck air through. Less air volume = less effective.

I have a Conway air purifier but I hear that the LEVOIT brand is better.

Improved sleep

There is growing evidence that perfecting your sleep is one of the most important things you can do to improve your health and mood. I struggled with terrible sleep for over a decade until I made it a priority.

Sleep tracker

My Oura ring taught me a lot about the habits which I didn't realize were bad for my sleep. The Oura ring is considered a top-tier sleep tracker, much better than (say) an Apple Watch.

Unfortunately, the later generations of the ring have a subscription model, which I would never buy. I have the Oura Gen 1, which is not subscription based.

Eye mask

The Manta sleep mask is overpriced but it's super nice and it is a significant improvement over cheaper ones. I think it was worth the investment.

Misc

Extra large pill box

I take various supplements and meds, and don't want to open a bunch of pill bottles every morning. I fill up a giant pill organizer once a month, which reduced friction and helps me stick to good habits. I actually have two: one for morning supplements, and another for bed time supplements.

Barefoot shoes

Wearing shoes with small toe-boxes is modern day foot-binding. There are many health benefits to barefoot shoes, which is discussed in this informative Peter Attia podcast.

I own three pairs of Vivobarefoot shoes and they are great. I also own two pairs from the Xero shoes, but I don't recommend them. They get very stinky and the insoles constantly slide under my foot.

Shoe trees

I recommend placing shoe trees in your shoes, after each wear. They improve the look, performance, and longevity of your shoes, by smoothing out wrinkles, maintaining shape, and preventing extreme toe spring from developing.

They mostly need to be in your shoes for the 24 hours after you wear them. I bought cheap plastic ones in bulk on Amazon, which I don't love, so I don't link them here.

Pocket shears

San Francisco's streets are full of wild succulents. I bring shears with me on walks to take cuttings to propagate. The one I use is called the AccuSharp 10-in-1 Hand Pruners.

fixing bad breath

I sleep with a mouth guard because I grind my teeth. Ever since I started wearing them, my breath started to STINK. It didn't matter that I brushed daily, flossed, tongue scraped, used denture cleaners every day. It was awful.

Then I found out about a few things:

Oral Probiotic pills: these colonize your mouth with new bacteria that don't sink. I don't need to take them often anymore since the bacteria have been replaced.

Xylitol lozenges: these simulate saliva in your mouth, preventing your mouth from drying out. This is good for your overall gum health, and also helps with breath.

Face band to keep mouth closed. These are useful for a few reasons: it stops snoring, keeps your mouth from drying out, and stops apnea. I tried the mouth tape trick but it caused my lips to chap. I pair the band with Vicks nose strips to open up my airways and make it easier to breath.

Goodstore EcoGeek cleaning products

The Goodstore EcoGeek cleaning products are great because:

• you can get unscented cleaning products, unlike most cleaning products that contain endocrine disruptors.
• Most cleaning products are extremely wasteful because:
  • they ship unnecessary water weight instead of letting users re-hydrate the active ingredients at home.
  • require thick plastic containers due to their spill risk.
• Ships in minimal paper packaging.
• 100% of profits go to coral reef restoration.

Tools

• A cordless screwdriver is really nice to have when you have to assemble furniture. I like my Dewalt screwdriver.
• Speaking of Dewalt, I love these drills. I used cheaper ones for years but that was asking for frustration. They go on sale often and make a great gift.
• I keep various all-in-one ratchet screwdriver sets around the house and in my car. I have own a few different brands and they are all similar (example).
• I keep a Gerber Dime micro multi-tool attached to my keys. It's a great everyday carry tool.

Software

Obsidian.md

I love Obsidian. It's a free and open-source note-taking application that saves all your files as plain markdown files-- no vendor lock-in. There is a ton of community contributed Obsidian plug-ins, making it very customizable. In fact, the website you're reading is generated from my Obsidian notes! See my #obsidian notes for more.

Electronics

Mini power extension cords

I hate it when large power adapters blocks neighboring power outlets. A mini extension chord gives gives you back those blocked outlets.

Label maker

I love my Brother label maker. Speaking of power adapters, one of the first things I do with a new appliance is to label its power adapter, so I know which appliance it belongs to when they inevitably get separated.

Split keyboard

I started having carpel tunnel and RSI during grad school, and I continue to struggle with it. One thing that has greatly improved my ergonomics is a split keyboard. I've tried a few brands, but the best I've tried is my ZSA Ergodox EZ.

Instapot

My Instapot is probably my favorite kitchen appliance. I can slow cook, pressure cook, cook grains, make yogurt, saute... it's so versatile.

Bug bite heat pen

If you're like me, you have sweet blood and mosquitoes love to bite you. What if I told you that there is a way to instantly relieve itchy bug bites?

There are gadgets which deliver a brief pulse of high temperatures through a ceramic plate. The heat burst activates the heat/pain receptors in your skin, especially TRPV1 nociceptors. This momentary pain signal inhibits the itch signal, quickly cutting the urge to scratch.

Electric fly swatter

Speaking of mosquitoes, the fastest way to clear a room in my experience is using an electric swatter.

Infinite lip balm

I buy lip balm in bulk and scatter them all over the house and in my backpacks.

Travel

Maximum size personal item backpack

Traveling without checked luggage rocks. Get the largest personal item bag possible and stuff it.

Jacket with lots of pockets

After I had to pay a huge penalty for my carry on being overweight, I vowed never to have it happen to me again. I got a Scottevest jacket which has ALL the pockets. I've stuffed it with a ridiculous amount of stuff, including a pair of shoes and the 2 liter water bottle I recommended above. There's no limitation on how heavy your clothes can be on a flight and I've never had problems.

Portable router

I hate having flakey Wi-Fi or insecure Internet while I'm traveling. I recently discovered the GL.iNet GL-MT3000 Beryl AX. It's a tiny Wi-Fi 6 router packed with a bunch of features, such as setting it up with a VPN or Tailscale. At home, I set one up at my wife's desk because she was having flakey Internet.

Skin Care

The most important part of skin care is blocking UV rays. For days where I need really good sun block (prolonged direct sun, high UV index) I like Blue Lizard Sensitive Mineral Sunscreen. It's unscented, no parabens.

Robotic vacuum and mop

I learned to hate Roombas because they were so dumb and caused many messes. But I recently got a Roborock QV 35A and I've been super impressed. It doesn't constantly knock loudly into objects, self empties and refills its water tank, and is very easy to unjam.

I think it does a better than house cleaners we've hired, since it gets a lot of difficult to reach corners that cleaners miss. It intelligently varies the cleaning plan for each zone from deep clean to light clean on a rotation so that the floors are kept amazingly clean.

Our house has uneven floors, and I assumed that we would need to pick it up to get over the ledges. But I was very surprised to see it has an extenting bit that lets it tilt up and pull itself into the ledge. It's really one of my favorite things. We call it Snail since the mop makes it look like it has a snail trail.