The Apple Note

I loved The Atlantic’s ode to the Apple Note, mostly because I use the notes app in the same way:

Unlike Evernote or Notion, it’s not necessarily organized for the user’s future self. It is essentially built-in scratch paper on a phone, and it reveals a person’s digital subconscious.

I have a few notes organized around a theme, such as ideas for future meals. Whenever we’re meal planning, I’ll return to that note and see if I’m still in the mood for whatever idea bubbled up in my head while we were watching television. But most notes are just running snippets of quotes from books or funny things the kids said or random things I suddenly remember and want to capture.

Whenever a note gets ridiculously long, I’ll start another one. So, looking back at old notes takes me back to a stage in my life in the same way that looking back at open tabs in Safari also reveals what I was thinking about years ago. I have tabs that have been open since 2017. Maybe earlier.