History
Learned something new today. Napoleon had his secretary leave all non-urgent mail unopened for three weeks — and most of it resolved itself without him ever touching it.
There’s a productivity concept named after this called the Napoleon Technique, and honestly it just makes sense. Sometimes the best move is to leave something alone and let it sort itself out.
At the end of that time it was unnecessary to reply to four-fifths of these communications. — Bourrienne, Memoirs of Napoleon Bonaparte
This past week, the world watched four astronauts climb into a capsule called Integrity and fly to the Moon and back for the first time in over fifty years. Artemis II splashed down in the Pacific on April 10th, carrying Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Jeremy Hansen farther from Earth than any crew since Apollo.
It was a big deal. And watching it, I kept thinking about eleven men most people have never heard of — men who quietly helped make all of this possible. I knew the Gallaudet 11 were involved in space experiments. What I didn’t know was just how deep that involvement went — that their work quietly laid the foundation for human spaceflight as we know it. That’s the part that got me.
TIL the 1831 London Bridge was moved to Arizona! Built to replace the crumbling medieval bridge, it eventually started sinking itself and was sold in 1968. Having seen the modern replacement in London in 2018, it’s wild to think the “original” stones are now in the US!
I am in awe that people still race Penny Farthings. Every year—including this past February 2026. On purpose. The thing has a giant front wheel, no real brakes, and if you hit a rough patch, you’re going headfirst over the bars — they actually call that a “header.” The World Championship course in Eastbourne is nearly 3 miles uphill. One gear. No brakes. Riders show up in full Victorian kit like it’s totally normal.
The art of riding a high-wheeler is the art of falling gracefully.
Ever wonder why every hotel drawer has a Bible? It started in 1899 when two traveling salesmen shared a room and realized weary travelers needed comfort. By 1908, their group, the Gideons, began placing them worldwide. Check out more wild history facts here.
You know how some people collect stamps or vintage records? I collect random things. It's honestly my favorite thing - shuffling through the vast web, discovering stuff I never knew existed. So here's what caught my attention lately.
Someone once said, “The more you know, the more you realize you don’t know.” Turns out that’s annoyingly true. Especially when you discover entire personality types you never knew existed.
Ready? Let’s dive in.