About six years ago, I changed the password to a secondary email account I had and promptly forgot it. I mostly used that email address for junk, but it was connected to some accounts that I either still used or wanted to delete. Over the past several years, I have tried every password I could think of or find scribbled on a scrap of paper somewhere. I attempted account recovery, then advanced account recovery (where a human reviews all the information I can give them about the account). When I got a job at the company that runs this email service, I tried the internal account recovery method twice, but still was not able to convince them that it was my account.

A few weeks ago, I tried a new writing exercise. I got an old, empty notebook and started writing. I turned the page, and there it was written: the username and password to this account.

Sometimes answers appear in unexpected places. I hope you figure out your password.