2 full time jobs "testing things" later, here are the best of the best.

Underconsumption, too much product, crazy affiliate sale culture, and what I think is actually "worth it."

Hello, reader! I have been sitting on this post for many months— mostly because I don’t like sending too many consumer-y posts— but I decided to hit publish while its contents are perhaps most likely to be on sale and you are welcome to take it or leave it, if you’re feeling not-so-shoppy, as I have been lately.

I’ve had very mixed feelings about doing this at all since I feel so many influencers and content creators are positively shoving Prime Day and the Nordstrom Sale down my throat to make an affiliate buck. I completely understand that’s how the living gets made for a whole industry of folks we watch, follow, and read obsessively, though it can feel like… a lot… when everyone pushes the same thing all at once. I don’t have the Instagram or TikTok apps on my phone, my only media consumption comes from Substack, and it’s shocking that on one platform alone I am feeling as saturated as I do. I don’t want to have to restrict the way I engage with Substack, but it’s definitely gettin…