This is the first of my hopefully daily writing practice.

But Brandon, what about finishing your trip notes? Well I’ll get to those when I feel inspired, but I want to start a log of things I’m thinking about and just build this habit.

I don’t know how these will turn out. It’s very possible it will read like a wild rant but there’s also a good chance it will resemble my old reading recommendations newsletter from The Spur Group, which the majority of you won’t know, just trust me they’re amazing. I’m limited a bit on the inclusion of random internet pictures and I might hold off on some more obscure references but we’ll find that out together.

Anyways, this one isn’t particularly exciting but at least I’ve broken the mythical seal.

Topics on my mind this particular morning…

IPAs

In my group chat for the IE MBA I’m attending in January we had a little debate about beers this morning. Many people view IPAs as overly popular and basic. While they have enjoyed their time in the spotlight, I think it’s a slightly incorrect way of thinking about it. While many things can be coined basic, it’s normally a SPECIFIC way of ordering something or buying a SPECIFIC item; pumpkin spice, UGGs, Lululemons, etc.. The beauty behind IPAs is that there is something for everyone. There are thousands of variants ranging from fruity to bitter, strong, weak, etc.. That diversity means that using a whole category as a proxy for basic doesn’t really work. Maybe that’s just because I like them. Anyways, here’s a recommendation for my favorite IPA out there right now, Stone’s Fear. Movie. Lions. Double IPA. See if you can pick it up near you here. First one to buy one and message me a photo will have their beer comp’d by me :)

Consumer “Gifts”

Not sure about my title for this one.. Capital One recently emailed me a thank you for being a good customer. As a result, I had my APY lowered. But, here’s the thing, in my mind, being a good customer is that I always pay off my credit card bills. So in effect it’s a useless gift. My APY could be 1,000% percent, but I’m not going to buy anything I can’t afford. Of course, they may have the idea that they want to lower my APY to get me to spend more but that’s not going to work, sorry fellas.

Also, if you take a step back, I’m actually a bad customer for them. I don’t know what the pay outs are for Visa/Cap One per each swipe, but it can’t be high, they go for volume. A lot of their money comes from charging ridiculous interest on debt. (Disclaimer: I know next to nothing about the CC business)

In conclusion, the email they sent me actually meant: “We’re not making enough money on you. We’ll lower your interest risk so you spend more. You’re a terrible customer, be less responsible.” Maybe I’m just a cynic haha.

Anyways, I love Capital One so no hate. Just some thoughts.