Wow! It was a wonderful meal in Paris. The food was exquisite. The courses were great. The wine? Outstanding. And the service? Spectacular.
Now, as the meal is winding down, we want a keepsake - a memory that we’ll keep in our phones, on our wall or in an album long after the meal is done. Dessert has just finished and there are big smiles across our faces. Daryl extends his arm ready to document the moment.
He opens the photo app and is about to touch the shutter button and, just like that, the waiter sweeps in to ask in slightly broken English:
“May I take your photo for you?”
“No,” we emphatically reply.
Our replies are always met with a polite scowl - a slight offense as if to say:
"What, do you mean I’m not good enough for you?”
The same applies to well-meaning friends and family. The thing is - it’s not you, it’s us…
And as you can see, even though the above photo contains a certain amount of verité it’s just not up to our stringent standards or the image we’d prefer to broadcast to thousands or sometimes hundreds of thousands of people. This is why we always prefer our well-honed selfie method.
You could blame Daryl’s controlling perfectionist streak but this unyielding stance was born from of both of us. If you ever ask to take our picture, you’ll notice we’ll both begin to squirm. We appreciate your good intentions. We just prefer taking pictures of ourselves ourselves.
The Birth of the Mindyl Selfie
The first Mindyl (our official couple name - think TomKat and Bennifer) selfie happened on Miami Beach in the winter of 2016 - our first year of full time travel. We decided to post our journey on social media with just pics of ourselves accompanied by location tags. We figured that we needed stay ‘as humble as possible’ while fulfilling our travel dream. Understatement quickly became the order of the selfie day.
We continued posting pics in California, Oregon, France, Germany, Vietnam, Thailand and, eventually, our in current base of Portugal. Along the way, we wanted to allow other people to take our photo. We did. We really did. But we got burned too many times by well meaning fellow-tourists and servers who were allegedly trained to take proper photos.
Those proper photos are no match for, as Mindi calls them, selfies taken with Daryl’s freakishly long arm. And there have been many. We’re talking thousands. These selfies hold prominent importance to us and we’re thrilled to have them as memories of our travels.
The Evolution of the Mindyl Selfie
At first, we attempted to self-time photos and ask people to photograph us. We’re glad we stopped. Now, as we page through our growing travel history, we’re thrilled to have a library of quality selfies that bring us back to the glory of our journeys.
Over time and distance, through phone updates, sunsets and exhaustion, we’ve honed our selfie techniques. Lately, we’ve noticed peers joining in the fun by copying some of our these techniques and we’re all for it.
So you’re probably wondering - What are our secrets? What are some selfie tips you can share?
Don’t worry, we’re going spill the tea for our paid subscribers. But, first, some housekeeping items…
Links We’re Liking
It’s not just animals that become extinct - food can become extinct too. | The Guardian
Have you ever wondered what happens if you want to cancel a restaurant reservation after the deadline? If so, you’ll want to read this story about a reservation cancellation that didn’t have a happy ending. | Today
Philadelphia readers will be happy to read that Federal Donuts is returning to South Philly bigger and better than ever. | Philadelphia Inquirer (Subject to Monthly Article Limit If You’re Not a Subscriber)
New on the Website
We published a new recipe for the Greyhound. It’s a tasty two-ingredient cocktail that’s ideal for summertime sipping.
We updated our Naples Gelato Guide to include four new spots that are also ideal for summertime.
For Paid Subscribers Only: 5 Tips for Taking Kick-Ass Selfies
by Daryl (with input from Mindi)
The time has come for us to share our top selfie tips so that you can take great selfies too. Let’s go!