With all that’s going on in the world it occurred to me being online a lot and trolling social media is probably a bad thing. Bad for my mental health, bad for my level of anger and just bad in general.
I can’t be angry or anxious or feel bad almost all the time. It’s no way to live.
So, with that in mind I’ve been taking a sorta break from most online things. I still post on Instagram and look at photos or watch YouTube videos, but I pretend most other things don’t exist and rarely, if ever, post anything. No Threads. No Facebook. No Bluesky and certainly no Twitter (I will never call it X. Fuck that).
One benefit of not scrolling all the time is, well, more time. I’ve got more time to do other things. One of the things is writing. I’ve been writing more. It isn’t hard to write more than I had been. Any bit would be more when compared to zero, which is what I had been doing.
One of the ways I’ve started writing again is by doing a journal. Every night before I go to bed, instead of looking at my phone or iPad or whatever, I write in one of my favorite notebooks (the Confidant from Baronfig if you’re curious) with one of my favorite pens or pencils (the Uni-Ball 207+ and/or the Blackwing 602).
No, this isn’t a commercial for those products, they’re just some of my favorites. I do love my pens, pencils and notebooks. Some might say too much. But that’s crazy. You can never have enough. Fight me.
Writing every day and keeping a journal (or whatever you want to call it) has been great. I really like doing it and I think it’s become a habit. It makes me happy.
I’ve also seen quite a few people talking about writing a journal first thing in the morning. Getting all the stuff out of your brain before you start your day. That sounds great too and I will probably do that at some point.
For now, though, I’m happy with my progress and don’t want to take on too much. I don’t want to beat myself up if I can’t journal two times a day or something. I’m happy I’m doing it at least once a day, every day. I’ll take the small victories where I can.
So, if you’re feeling some ways about some things: angry, anxious, afraid, whatever, maybe trying writing those feelings and thoughts down in a journal. You don’t have to show it to anyone or even read it ever again. It’s just for you. It’s just to have a place to put some of those feelings and thoughts you maybe don’t want to keep inside.
I really think it’s working for me. It might work for you too.
With the additional free time I’ve also been reading more and watching some shows. Currently, I’m reading The Foundation series by Isaac Asimov. It’s been awhile and I’m enjoying the Apple TV+ series so I thought I’d revisit the books.
I also read this great book called Make Time about, well, time and taking some control over your own happiness and satisfaction during the day and in your life. I don’t usually read this kind of thing (self-help or whatever), but these authors make a lot of sense. It’s definitely made me think about what I do during the day and how I spend my time.
Finally, I’m spending more time with my family, taking some walks and even making the occassional photograph. As always, you can find some of those on my Instagram.
Ok. That’s it for now. Be kind to each other.