Buy One Thing: An Extra-Long Charging Cable For Your Smartphone

When $10 buys you ephemeral happiness.

Before I crawl into bed and wait for the distant rumble of the garbage trucks that barrel down my street to lull me to sleep, I like to indulge in a habit that I know is bad for me but is enjoyable nonetheless: staring into the depths of my phone until I feel ready for bed.

I look at beauty blogs, mostly, swiping happily through slideshows of hair products and highlighter, making mental notes of things to maybe purchase but definitely research the next day, alert and awake at my computer. This is a habit of which I’m not especially proud. But, after working very late, my brain feels as if it needs a quick dunk in an ice bath — something to clear out the errant thoughts bonging around corners, keeping me awake at night. It’s counterintuitive to think that staring at another screen, but smaller and in the dark, would achieve the peace I crave, but it works for me and that’s all anyone can ask for.

However, for a long time, the cord for my iPhone did not because it was too damn short.

So one day, when I was in line at Duane Reade, buying Drano for the bathroom and a KitKat for me to eat while dealing with the bathroom, I grabbed a six foot long cord from the bins by the register, paid for it and went home. It cost $10 — maybe $15? It was less than I thought it would be. I am happy to report that it has changed my nightly ritual of ruining my eyes before bed for the better.

Being able to stretch out and over the entire geography of my bed, with my phone or my Kindle or my iPad propped up on my chest, watching RuPaul’s Drag Race, is so very nice. No longer confined to the corner by the edge of my bed, flopped over on one side, straining the cord, causing its little wires to fray. The dumb blue cord stretches as far as I need it to. It’s not “happiness” per se, but something adjacent to it — luxury, perhaps. Having the exact thing you need in the exact moment you need it is worth the money. At least it is for me.

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