A foldable kayak, Forbes and FU time
The biggest benefit of working from home and actually using it
While I’m not exactly sure what question Carnac the Magnificent might come up with for that headline, there are far too few brain cells in my head at this early hour to offer anything but another F, the facts.
My buddy and gadget guru Scott, AKA The Family CTO, had an assignment from Forbes to review the Oru Kayak, a foldable kayak that weighs 17 pounds. Scott turned to yours truly, an avid kayaker and self-employed WFH copywriter—somebody who could say, “FU, I’m taking the morning off”—to provide feedback for the review.
Now, as was the case much of this past summer, we caught a beautiful day. So, we met midway between Albany and Boston. With his young son along, we quickly put two Oru kayaks together and headed out on a small lake. It was a fairly short paddle, about an hour. Yet the joy of doing something I love and hanging out with an old friend and his offspring brought a calm to what’s been an otherwise stressful summer.
On top of all that, the kayak was cool and rode like a charm. I felt stable the entire time. If you work from home and don’t have the storage space for a traditional kayak, the Oru works on so many levels. And the price, $599 is right (does not include paddles or PFD).
What’s the hack you might be wondering? Just a reminder to take some time to smell the roses and get out of the office for a few hours and spend some time with friends. Even better if you can do it in nature outdoors.
When I returned to the office by about 1pm, I felt refreshed. Since I didn’t have to go back to an office where people could see me, it was simply a matter of going back to my desk and getting to it. Sure, I worked into the evening. Well worth it.
Isolation and being glued to work present the biggest challenges to WFH employees and home-based business owners. Build time off into your schedule and take advantage of the flexibility your situation offers when you have the chance to do something cool like test a new product. And appear in Forbes.
Speaking of, here’s the review—with a photo of yours truly-- in Forbes.
The Oru Kayak is available on their website or on Amazon.
A must have for WFH?
Since Covid, it’s fairly simple to stroll on to articles talking about “must haves” for your home office. The beauty of the home office is that many people can get to work with a computer, phone, internet connection. In my opinion, everything after that is gravy. But one article I found insisted that Cleaning Gel Universal Dust Cleaner for PC Keyboard Cleaning Car Detailing Laptop Dusting Home and Office Electronics Cleaning Kit Computer Dust Remover from ColorCoral 160G is a “must have”.
With two keyboards—my laptop and my ergonomic —a clean board does make typing much easier. To date, a can of air and/or a sponge brush have done the trick. I did try some sort of goo once, but it was a tad disgusting. But I’m willing to try again in the sake of cleanliness and we’ll see if it meets the “must have” criteria.
Have you used a product like this? Submit your comments below.
Inspiring quote of the week
“Only when we are brave enough to explore the darkness will we discover the infinite power of our light.” —Brene Brown