Strangers showed us their Notes app. Here's what we learned.

0:28Hi, Colby. I have her name Joanna and her phone number. Sorry, Joanna. Sorry, Joanna. I don't know who you are, but I have your phone number in my notes app. And I apparently didn't think she was important enough to save as a contact. So I put her number. You soft-launched her just in the notes app. I soft-launched her into my notes. Sorry. I will do a call out for my seven-year-old. Because sometimes when she says something funny, I put it in. They go in here. So what do you got? What do you got? Well, so she fancies herself a songwriter. And the other day she started writing a song and the first line is, the odds aren't great, but the evens aren't perfect either.

1:05Okay. How good is that? That is very good. I was just like, wow, that is profound, seven-year-old. Yeah. Recently, I sat down with my co-host, Elahe Azadi, to talk about a little piece of technology that helps us keep track of our lives, the Notes app. The Notes app is sort of like a digital diary. And Eli has been asking total strangers to open their phones and show her the private notes they write to themselves. Because I have been testing out this little theory that, yes, you can get to know someone, some aspect of them, if you look at their social media profiles. You know, like what they're putting out on Instagram or Facebook or LinkedIn or wherever.

1:47But if you want the full story, the place to really look is inside of their Notes app.

1:58From the newsroom of The Washington Post, this is Post Reports. I'm Kolbe Ekowitz. It's Thursday, December 4th. Today, what the reminders and memories we jot down in our Notes app reveal about us and how we live our lives. I talked to Alahe, who also writes for the style section of the post, about what she learned in her notes app experiment.

2:32So let's set the stage. Maybe for people who don't see their phone as like an extension of their body and don't know this, what is a notes app? Yeah, so most smartphones have some note-keeping app. There's Google Keep. Samsung has Samsung Notes. But Notes app is kind of the shorthand for the one that is probably the most ubiquitous, which is Notes in the iPhone. And it's been available on every version of the iPhone since the iPhone debuted in 2007. It's currently on 2.35 billion active Apple devices. So not just on your phone, but the laptop. And Apple does not release data on how frequently this app is used.

3:19But I think the fact that it has been there since the beginning speaks to how likely it is that people find this useful. And there have been some updates to the technology since it first came out. But it's pretty much always been this thing where you can just click it, open it up, and you can just start typing. It's a basic text editor, which is why I was kind of drawn to this idea of looking inside of it because it's this blank canvas. You just open it up and you write what is on your mind, things that you are afraid of forgetting, things that are too important to forget, things that are too private to post on social media, or things that you don't think are even worth posting on social media.

4:05So it's like this full collection of the totality of our lives. That's such an interesting theory. So you take this theory and you have this idea, okay, what can I learn about people from their notes app? How did you then go about reporting this? Okay, first of all, I realized I reconnected to one of the reasons I love being a reporter, which is you get to walk up to strangers and ask them questions. And I went up to people throughout Washington, D.C. I called up some people on the phone. I introduced myself as a Washington Post reporter and asked, can I look inside your notes app? I can't imagine how people responded to this.

4:44So most people, as I was going around Washington, D.C. and calling them up on the phone, were totally game, surprisingly, to let me look inside their notes app. Some people actually let me hold their phone and scroll myself. That's shocking. Because to your point, like Instagram, Facebook, whatever, highly curated, right? It's the image we want to put forward to the world. But your notes app is just for you. Yeah. And so the fact that people let a Washington Post reporter just like scroll through their phone, he knows what they'll find. Yeah. And they didn't even know what was going to be in there until they opened it up.

5:16So what did you find? Okay. So lots of packing lists, grocery lists, recipes, lists, lists on lists. Lots of lists. Also, people had their passwords in there. But what I was really struck by was when people started reading to me the very specific things in their notes, I very quickly did get a window into their lives. So this one woman I spoke to over the phone, her name is Sasha Taskier. I feel like it's the catch-all of so many different things in my life. I probably use it every day. And I asked her, you know, what's at the top of your list? And she's like, oh, it's coffee orders. And I'm like, coffee orders?

5:59So she starts reading them out. Like a decaf Americano, a tall iced white mocha, a pike with cream, a white mocha soy latte with an extra shot. And she's like, yeah, these are the coffee orders for my kids' teachers. I like to treat my kids' teachers to nice little moments. So I like to have their drink order at the beginning of the year. And then I know what to order them when I feel like they need an extra pick me up. And to me, that just immediately telegraphed to me like, OK, this is someone who is involved in our kids' lives, but also is like paying attention to the teachers and has that level of attentiveness.

6:39And thoughtfulness. Yeah. And it just told me something immediately about her and how she moves through the world. Yeah. And then I met this other guy, 24-year-old Christopher Davis, and his most recent note was also a coffee order. But then the note that he had written just before that the day before was the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit. And he told me that he was in church on Sunday and he felt, you know, divine love in his heart. And he just had this feeling and he opened up his phone and he just wanted to capture the feeling that came to him in that moment. And I just thought that the juxtaposition of those two things, like the holy and the banal, like that's life, right?

7:19And so I did feel like I got a window into his life and in a way how we all move through the world. We all have these moments where we're struck by something really profound. And then it's like, oh, I got to, what was the coffee order I got to get? It's so true. You know? It's so true. Yeah. Yeah. But then, you know, I spoke with this other woman by phone, Olivia Norman, and she used her notes app in kind of interesting ways. Like she kind of kept it as a diary. But then also she shared with me, you know, she was diagnosed with breast cancer and it was not something that she was sharing on social media as she was going through it.

7:56I think because I didn't want to answer everyone's questions. I didn't want people to tell me, oh, well, if you just hadn't eaten sugar. You might not have cancer. I didn't want to be blamed for something that I couldn't control. It was a very private thing. But she was documenting and taking notes. Here's one from my first day where I said chemo was okay. Had to take a break because the meds made me cold and a little short of breath. For anyone who's been through a health struggle, if you go to the doctor's office and they're telling you a lot of stuff, that's one of the places people open up their notes app and they type in like, what is the medication I'm supposed to take?

8:33What am I, you know, what is the prognosis, all that. And it was really interesting because when I asked her, why do you keep these? She told me, I want to preserve and know what it felt like walking in that door. Just to remember what it felt like walking in and going into that chemo room. you know and just to just if I and also I never want to think about it but if I ever get a recurrence I know exactly what was done the first time you know it's like a different type of nostalgia when you read what you wrote in the moment of going through something either wonderful or very difficult and it's almost like you're looking back at your past self like if only that person knew what was coming.

9:25Right. And her even reading that over the phone to me, I could feel like I felt chills. Like we were transported back in that moment, walking into that hospital room with her. God, that's profound.

9:39After the break, how the notes app can help us workshop our most intimate conversations and allow us to be more intentional with our friends and family. We'll be right back.

9:57Good journalism is even better when it's shared. With a premium subscription to The Washington Post, you get three extra accounts to share with friends and family, so they can stay informed, too. Right now, you can get a premium subscription to The Post for$6 every four weeks. Just$6 unlocks trusted reporting to share with other people in your life. After your first six months, it'll cost$19 every four weeks. you can cancel anytime. Head over to WashingtonPost.com slash subscribe and get premium access to The Washington Post today. That's WashingtonPost.com slash subscribe. So I'm thinking about the woman who documented her first day of chemo, you know, using it as kind of a diary that can give this window into people's lives.

10:49But not everyone is using the app in that way, right? I mean, a lot of what you're talking about, like, I have my packing list, right? People have a grocery list. Like, what is the fact that I, you know, need to pack four bathing suits for my beach trip, like, really tell you about me? I guess, other than the fact that I don't want to re-wear bathing suits. But other than that, like, did you meet anyone who used it in a way that, like, really surprised you? And you were like, huh, I never knew someone would use a Notes app for that reason. Oh, my gosh. So I've discovered several interesting new ways to Use this app and use this technology.

11:21I'm ready for it. One person told me by phone, Michael Lussier, he told me, and this is genius, he has an individual note for every friend person in his life. So he has 46-ish notes. Whoa. And I'm like, okay, what's in these notes? Yeah, yeah, yeah. And it's like, okay, he opened one up. He's like, all right, here's a friend of mine. It has their birthday, the day we met, any sort of like milestones they've shared. So this one friend I met on, for instance, so their birth date is October 6th. The first time we interacted was November 25th. Then the first time we went on a big trip was May 25th.

11:59And then he kind of has this running list of things like, let's say you go to coffee with a friend and they're telling, you know, I'm trying to like work on a thing. And you're having a conversation and you're trying to support your friend. We'll put it in there so that when he reconnects with his friend the next time, he knows to follow up on it. When we do finally have time for both of our schedules to sync or for both of us to make it into the same coffee shop or make it into the same concert, whatever it may be, once we're able to do that, we can make sure that time is meaningful and that we're actually enjoying each other's presence.

12:31We're following up on those things that are important to each other. So it's his way of bringing a level of intentionality and that he can be really present with someone when he's with them rather than trying to remember like what is it that they were telling me about, you know? I do have to tell you, like Michael, my husband does this, but it's not for close friends. It's for new friends. Oh. So if he meets someone new, like at a party or at a work event, he'll like go home, open up the notes app, and he'll be like, Joe Schmo has four kids. One kid plays baseball. And so like the next time he runs into that person, he can be like, hey, how's Johnny's Little League team?

13:08So it's a very similar usage. I mean, I think that's great. I don't personally use my notes app for that reason, but I sometimes use it as a place for first drafts. Totally. Like whether it's the first draft of an article I'm writing or for something for a podcast episode. But I also use it for the first draft of like really hard conversations. Like if I need to send someone a difficult text or difficult email or even like have a one-on-one, I might like jot down what I would say to that person first. Is that a common use of the Notes app? Yeah. So I think you can just even look out at some of your favorite artists, musicians, novelists.

13:44People like some of the biggest songs they started in the Notes app. Like people will write down lyrics in there. it is where the first draft for a lot of people lives. So I spoke to this one woman. She's a comedian, Elena Torres. And I especially wanted to talk to a comic because I know comics use the No Zap to write premises or they write their set list. And it's like living next to all this other stuff. Because I imagine as a comic, like an idea pops in your head for a bit and you got to jot it down quickly, right? And that's what Elena told me. You know, I'm a mother of two and a comedian.

14:20someone's running around. Usually the best joke ideas don't come when you're like sitting at your desk, right? In the perfect moment or when you have a pen and paper. And so then I asked her, is there a note in there that was the premise for a joke that you just have no idea what it is anymore? And she read one out to me. I have one that's just titled 10 to 12 deep. And that's it. That's all it says. I don't know what that means. That's all it says. She couldn't crack that code. And I'm sure that's like infuriating, too, because you're like, that must have meant something. And it was probably hilarious.

14:55It was probably hilarious, but it's like the shorthand that many of us have. And it's like, surely I'll remember what that is. But yeah, if you revisit it, you're not going to know. But also some of her greatest jokes started out as a note like that. And she did figure it out. And now she's telling those jokes on stage. Yeah.

15:13I am interested in the people that use it as a journal. Because I remember when I was a girl, and I think for most women our age, like we had a physical journal growing up, right? And we used paper and pen and mine even had a lock and key on it, right? But now people are using like a digital app for the types of things that we used to write down on paper. And in some ways, I feel like that makes like the memory keeping, I don't know, less nostalgic. And like, do you see it that way? Like, I don't know. You look back at like the yellowing of paper of people's diaries. And does that get lost in keeping your thoughts in a phone?

15:51Yeah, it's interesting because I still think there are lots of people, myself included, who write a physical journal. And that's like the place you go to really work out whatever it is you're working out. But the point you're raising is a really interesting one. Because if we take the view of, let's say we're historians and we're trying to see what everyday life was like 100 years ago or 200 years ago or further back, we reference as primary source material like the notes and the journals and the handwritten things that people are writing. And increasingly, a lot of that from letters to like the day-to-day, this is what happened in my life today is being outsourced to digital platforms.

16:32And so there is this question of, especially for folks who are actively deleting these things, these things are ephemeral in a way that physical paper and pen are not. And so it raises this question of like, how will our future selves in the future, what will be their understanding of what it was like to live our lives right now if so much of it exists digitally? Well, there are like things that I can't access anymore. Like all of those college emails that would tell me so much about what I was like 20 years ago are gone. And so it's to your point, I do wonder like, will my grandchildren someday like they're not going to be able to see the emails that, you know, my husband and I have sent back and forth over the last 15 years.

17:17Or like someone shared with me that they have, speaking of first drafts, they have the draft of a text message they were going to send to the guy they were dating being like, what's going on here? They never hit send. Now that person's their husband. So it's like, is that going to live somewhere or is that going to be lost? You know, like that's part of their love story. Yes, totally. Well, I would like to turn the tables on you because, because I don't know, has anyone asked you to open up your notes app? No one has. No one did? Everyone's like, oh, I guess I'll show you what's in mine. I'm like, do they have any idea what's in mine?

17:51Okay. Well, I'm going to ask you now. Olai, show us your notes app. Okay, let's see. Oh, my gosh. Okay. At the top, we have a grocery list, and I will show you— What's the first item on the grocery list? Most of these things are not checked off. Bananas, spinach, frozen fruit, half and half, almond milk. And then I have some calculations for a loan application. Oh, on the same note. Why not? Why not? Why not? And then the next note is something profound that someone said to me and I didn't want to forget it. It says grief brings you back to your love of life. If you were reporting on yourself, what do you think your notes app would tell you about yourself?

18:30Oh, that I like I'm healthy because I'm like trying to buy bananas and spinach and frozen fruit that I am embarking on something in life where I'm inquiring about alone. That says something about, you know, and then this grief brings you back to your love of life. Like, yeah, I must have gone through some grief, but someone said something to me that really struck a chord and it was worth writing down. Yeah. Well, that's beautiful. My dad passed away two years ago and I had been going through my text messages with him and there was one that I just didn't want to lose. And so I copied it and I put it in my notes app.

19:07For some reason, I thought that would be easier to find in the future than scrolling through dozens and dozens of texts over the years. So it says, and I imagine it was at a time when I was struggling at work. And it's very simple. He just says, just be the best you can be in whatever they hand you. It will work out. Be patient. And so whenever I have a hard moment, I open up that app and I feel like he's, you know, he's telling me that again.

19:39Elihe, this was so fun. Yeah, I had so much fun. It was so fun. We'll do it again. I'm here for your next social experiment. Thanks, Colby. Thanks.

19:52Elihe Izzadi is one of the co-hosts of Post Reports and a reporter for the Style section. That's it for Post Reports. Thanks for listening. If you want to show your support for the show, please subscribe to The Washington Post. Not only is it a great way to help us continue to do this work, but you can now get access to Washington Post podcasts ad-free and Apple Podcasts. You can subscribe in Apple Podcasts or by following the link in our show notes. Today's show was produced by Thomas Liu. It was mixed by Sam Baer and edited by Ariel Plotnick. I'm Kolby Ickowitz. We'll be back tomorrow with more stories from The Washington Post.

20:40Good journalism is even better when it's shared. With a premium subscription to The Washington Post, you get three extra accounts to share with friends and family, so they can stay informed too. Right now, you can get a premium subscription to The Post for$6 every four weeks. Just$6 unlocks trusted reporting to share with other people in your life. After your first six months, it'll cost$19 every four weeks. You can cancel anytime. Head over to WashingtonPost.com slash subscribe and get premium access to The Washington Post today. That's WashingtonPost.com slash subscribe.