I’m on my way to Salt Lake City, where there is winter, from home in mild San Diego. I put on my topcoat this morning, reached in my pocket, and discovered a badge from Mobile World Congress 2025, almost exactly a year ago, which shows you the last time I wore that coat.

I remember this is an annual ritual in temperate climates in October or November. You put on your coat for the first time in a half a year and discover some little time capsule from the last time you wore it — a movie ticket, a couple of dollars, a half-crumpled cigarette pack with three remaining smokes.