A note on the links. Everything here is something I actually use. Some are affiliate or referral links — if you buy, book or apply through them, Prime Chapter may earn a commission or points at no extra cost to you (as an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases). It never changes what I recommend: if it's on this page, it's in my life. Nothing here is financial advice.
On the move
Everything that leaves the house with me.
Cards
The Cards I Carry (#ad)
Two cards, both of which I pay for and use. These are referral links — they don't change your price.
- Amex Platinum — I keep it for the Fine Hotels + Resorts portal, where 4pm checkout is guaranteed rather than subject to availability. What it's actually worth →
- Chase Sapphire Reserve — The Edit is the equivalent portal. Late checkout there is subject to availability, and the property credit earns no points — worth knowing before you compare the two.
Before you apply. Both cards carry a substantial annual fee, and both are only worth it if you'd have spent the statement credits anyway — a credit you never use isn't a discount, it's part of the fee. The math also depends entirely on clearing the balance every month: at current rates, a single month of carried interest can swallow a year of points. Each application is a hard inquiry on your credit file. Fees, credits and portal terms change often — check the current ones with the issuer before you apply. This is my own experience, not financial advice.
Travel
Stays I've Written About
The two properties behind The Fine Print, booked through the portals compared there.
Wearing
Shoes — four pairs, two sizes
Two questions decide a shoe, not one. What is it for — walking, or being seen in? And where is it going — an ordinary day, or a plane?
| Walking | Presentable |
|---|
| Everyday | On Cloud | Johnston & Murphy |
|---|
| Travel | Hoka | Skechers, black slip-ons |
|---|
The row matters more than the column. Travel shoes go up half a size. Feet swell on a plane, and a shoe that fits at the gate does not fit at hour six. That single line is the most useful thing on this page and it appears on none of the ranked-list sites.
- OwnedOn Cloud — the lightest of the four. Weight is my first test, the way you heft a watermelon before buying it.
- OwnedHoka — more cushion for long airport walks, which is what distance asks for. The soles are strangely too thick, so it is a love-hate pair. It still goes on every trip, because nothing else handles the mileage.
- OwnedJohnston & Murphy — the everyday shoe that can be worn where a dress shoe is expected.
- OwnedSkechers black slip-ons — cheap and cheerful. Off at security without sitting down, flat in the case, dark enough to pass in a restaurant. They came on the trip and the dress shoes stayed home.
- Friend swears byAllbirds — a friend rates them highly. I have not lived with a pair, so I am not judging them either way.
Why a pair leaves. No brand gets rejected here — every one of them is still in the rotation somewhere. What retires is a pair: they looked worn, the white soles would not clean up, or the shoes shrank and my feet grew. The reason is almost never the thing the reviews measure.
Clothing follows. Not written yet. When it is, it will be held to the same rule as everything else on this page.
Electronics
Charging, cables and cases
Two iPhones, two Apple Watches, two AirPods, a Mac, a DSLR, a gimbal, another camera and often an iPad. All of it needs power at some point, during the day and overnight. That count is why this category exists — it is not a list of chargers, it is the arithmetic of keeping eleven things alive in a hotel room with two outlets.
- OwnedTorras minimal power bank, 10,000 mAh — carried for the shape rather than the number. It goes in a jacket pocket without announcing itself, which is the only specification that ends up mattering.
- OwnedTransparent zip cases — a cheap multipack, used for toiletries and cables both. The clear panel is the whole feature: you find the cable without unpacking, and the bag comes out and goes back at security without a conversation.
- OwnedTravel hairdryer — the one item that genuinely needs a voltage converter rather than a plug adapter.
Adapters and converters are not the same thing. An adapter changes the shape of the plug. A converter changes the voltage. Most modern chargers, laptops and phones handle both voltages and need only an adapter — the things that do not are the ones with a motor or a heating element. Getting that wrong is how a device dies in a hotel room on the first night. Spare lithium batteries and power banks travel in the cabin, never in checked baggage.
The full electronics page →
Photography
What I shoot with
- OwnedDJI Osmo Mobile 8 — a phone gimbal, not a camera. Three-axis stabilization, subject tracking, and a built-in extension rod and tripod, so one object does three jobs. Shooting alone, the tracking is what stands in for the camera operator I do not have.
The accessory outlives the device. A phone gets replaced every few years and that money is spent again and again. The gimbal survives every upgrade. So the purchase worth researching properly is the stabilizer, not the camera — which is the opposite of how this is usually ordered, because the camera is the expensive item.
Whether a camera gets bought at all is still open. If the next phone is a good enough camera, it becomes the second body and the dedicated one never gets purchased. That verdict is not written until the phone exists and has been used — there is no point guessing at it here.
At home
What stays put.
Body
Scales & Equipment
- OwnedGreater Goods Weight Gurus 0375 — an older Bluetooth scale, no handles to hold out in front of you. It reports BMI, body fat, muscle and water alongside the weight. I only look at the weight. The rest is probably not that accurate — a foot-to-foot scale reads a narrower slice of you than a device you grip with both hands — but it is what I use, every morning, which is the only property that ended up mattering. Why the number was never the product →
- Meets the specWithings Body+ — the one people move up to. I have not owned it, so that is all I will say about it.
- Resistance Bands — the do-anywhere starter
- Adjustable Dumbbells
- Glucometer — any pharmacy brand works fine
Intake
Everything swallowed, in one place instead of three. What is here is what is in the cupboard.
Tracking
On the supplements: This is general information, not medical advice. I am not a doctor or a trainer — check with your physician before starting a new nutrition or training program. Supplements interact with prescription medication — that conversation belongs with your doctor or pharmacist before anything on this page goes in a cupboard.
Full disclosure: as an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases, and some links above are brand affiliate or card/hotel referral links. Every link goes live pointing at Amazon (or the brand) and gets refined to a specific product over time — but a recommendation is never paid for. If it's here, I use it.