What I Can’t Live Without
A Strategist inspired list.
Are you familiar with The Strategist’s weekly column, What I Can’t Live Without?
Briefly, it’s a list-style article, in which they ask public figures what they cannot live without. Sometimes the subject is truly well known, say Jennifer Aniston or Rachel Bilson, and sometimes I have no idea who the person is and so I learn a little something there too. Anyway, they tell you the random things that make their world go round and boy are they random indeed!
Rachel Bilson can’t live without Dr. Pepper lipbalm. Kate McKinnon can’t live without Nike socks. Sydney Sweeney can’t live without kit-kat drumsticks.
It makes me laugh because it just goes to show that we’re all just people, you know?
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Inspired, I decided to consider what I cannot live without and surprised myself with how easily I was able to rattle off a long list.
McCafe Colombian Ground Coffee
A simple gal indeed, I think McD’s has some of the best coffee in the business. I regularly swing through for a cup on my way into the office. And happily, I can brew it at home!
Fancy it is not, but consistently good is more important to me. I preset my pot to have this waiting for me at 5am every morning and I find it perfectly strong and dark enough to take a proper pour of half-and-half without losing that coffee flavor.
Apple AirPods
Circa 2020, my boss hopped on a zoom and gave the whole sales team a directive to order a set of AirPods and expense it to the company. I’m embarrassed now, but at the time I thought it was annoying to switch up our tech in the middle of a global pandemic. But a directive is a directive, so I did it. And guys, my life is forever changed! The noise cancelling is my favorite feature, especially since we’ve returned to the office and I’m back at a cubicle farm. I use them quite a bit in the evenings too, reading while sitting next to my family as they’re watching a show together. And at night, I’ll pop them in to fall asleep to meditation podcast. I would repurchase in under 24 hours if I lost them or they petered out.
Glossier You
Last fall, I ran out of my rollerball and used it as an opportunity to test drive other scents. It did not go well, and I promptly returned to my old standby, accepting that I’ve already found my true love, so there’s no use looking around.
I’ll add that the original is my favorite blend. Glossier came out with two new variations of the scent around Christmastime and I’m of the opinion that they’re just trash.
Drift Air Fresheners
I talk about this air freshener endlessly - because it’s the best! Teak is my favorite scent and I think it makes my car smell like a rich person drives it. Indeed a tired mother of average means, who acknowledges a certain amount of French fries jammed under the seats drives this car, but you’d never know by smelling it!
SunBum Glow 30
I’ve said it once, I’ve said it a hundred times: how his this product not more hyped?
It’s a perfect dupe for the viral GlowScreen at a fraction of the price. I mix it with a bit of moisturizer and the healthy sheen it leaves behind encourages me to wear SPF every single day. You will always find this on my daily drivers list.