The notebook 📝 “mind dump” experiment seems to find its footing. I can name it and define it, which means it has a more solid part in my morning routine.

My constructive thoughts - projects (work or personal), tasks, activities, journaling, etc. - fit in Emacs org-mode, a system I’ve used for four years. But these ideas need to start somewhere, and it’s not the computer.

Starting the day with coffee and a notebook at hand works for me. I have some precious alone time in the kitchen, and I start writing down thoughts and ideas.

Usually, it’s like rain. A drop here, a drop there, then as I continue, more and more ideas pour down on the paper. At other times, I wake up excited with an idea that was cooking on the back burner for a while, like this morning:

Books 📚.

I use a green frame for ideas that excite me and I want to do. I use a blue frame for chores and tasks I need to do. Also, in the picture are some blurred parts where I name specific people. usually it says “talk to Jay” or “email Denise” etc.

As for books, since you might be curious: There was a book I found in the bookstore in Italy about mushrooms. I didn’t get it from Amazon at the end; I decided I wanted to buy the physical book instead.

That store inspired me to try and take my reading habit more seriously. Instead of reading a couple of pages from a book, then get bored and put it down, I think I want to keep pushing for a bit (something I can define by page count or time) and then pick up another book if I don’t like what I’m reading. I used to be a reader, and I want to be a reader again.