Hey my friends, I’m covering a few things in this email, so it’s a bit longer than my usual fare. But I think this week’s length is worth it. First, I wanted to share some reflections on my own journey over the past month, that I’ve been emailing about.* Since January 6, I’ve attempted to break my technology habit, started to re-build my imaginative and creative capacities, and started to re-focus on human connections and cultural patterns. A big part of what I take away from this month is...
2 months ago • 5 min read
Hello my friends, This week has been, well, going. I feel almost back to my regular grind (le sigh…), but I am still working to keep these new shifts in my day-to-day. I am still: Meditating in the mornings Limiting my smartphone use Filling my time and imagination with other things like reading, listening (to the radio and music), daydreaming, walking, noticing colours and shapes and feelings in the world New for this week, I’ve also been trying to notice the different cultural groups where...
2 months ago • 3 min read
Hello my friends, The second week of my Reboot/Combat/Capacity Building is half-way done. This week I focused on continuing to build on my tech-habit-disrupting work from my first week, AND ALSO build my creative and imaginative capacities. I’ve found this week to be much easier in terms of limiting my phone use. I feel I have that many more ‘tools’ to turn to when I feel the impulse to scroll - reminding myself to read the paper, turn on the radio, or just daydream. I am trying to patiently...
3 months ago • 3 min read
Hello my friends, I am part way through the first week of my Reboot/Combat/Capacity Building. Woo hoo! But before I get into how my tech-disrupted week is going, I wanted to flag this pretty cool article in The Guardian by Rebecca Solnit called “Hope is an embrace of the unknown” - it’s an oldie but a goodie. About how hope is the ultimate resistance to cynicism and despair. She quotes American 20th century public intellectual Paul Goodman who famously said: “Suppose you had the revolution...
3 months ago • 3 min read
Happy New Year my wonderful friends! I hope you were able to take a break during the final weeks of 2024. I had some good time with my kiddos and my guy, and also got to see my folks. It was nice. I’m looking ahead to the rest of January. As I mentioned in my pre-holiday email, I’m planning a Digital Reboot of sorts, a Combatting of Brain Rot, a Building of Creative Capacities. (if you missed that email, you can find it here.) I am starting my Reboot/Combat/Capacity-Building on January 6th....
3 months ago • 2 min read
Hey Friends, Did you know that Oxford’s Word of the Year for 2024 is ‘brain rot’? Although, ironically, ‘brain rot’ is actually two words. But I digress. Oxford defines brain rot as: “the supposed deterioration of a person’s mental or intellectual state, especially viewed as the result of overconsumption of material (now particularly online content) considered to be trivial or unchallenging.” Oxford says that ‘brain rot’ moved into the spotlight because the term captures people’s concerns...
4 months ago • 3 min read
Hello My Friends, How did we find ourselves in December? Not only that, but we’re nearing the mid-point of December. New Year's Eve is literally around the corner. What the HECK!? There can be a lot of pressure at this time of year about so many things. About hosting an amazing party, about creating that magical time for your kids, about finishing strong at work or in your business. Maybe this email is your sign. Don’t worry about “finishing strong” - maybe finish soft. Or finish with love....
4 months ago • 2 min read
Hey Friends, I often get some serious eye-rolling when I insist that writing is still really, really important. In this age of A.I., and action-packed awkwardly-edited video reels on a mini-screen, writing might feel a bit, well, antiquated. It’s just words, on a page. Isn’t that… boring? My peeps, you know I love some good modes of multi-dimensional communication. Moving images! Colour! Text! And MORE! Call me old fashioned, but the amazingness of writing cannot be ignored. Writing is a...
5 months ago • 1 min read