#mindfulness

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The Kitchen View: While making lunch today, I stopped for a moment and noted all the visitors out my kitchen window— a cabbage white butterfly flitting around, a finch dropping by the water fountain for a quick drink, dragonflies swooping about or finding a tall stick to perch on, and lots of bees and other pollinators browsing the flowers. It was a busy, popular scene! And it reminded me that when I’m feeling discouraged and battered and insignificant from all the heavy news of the world, there are creatures great and small who find this little oasis of food, drink, and shelter outside my kitchen window a safe, inviting, welcoming place to visit. And that makes things a little better in this moment… 🌻☮️

A fuzzy view through the glass and screen of my kitchen window. Outside there are plant containers with growing/blooming flowers, veggies, and herbs; tall shrubs; a red sandstone patio; a faux rock water fountain; hanging wind chimes near the window; and other decorative bits scattered about. Inside, there is a string of small, colorful pennants hanging across the window with images of bicycles and outdoor adventures stamped on each of the little flags.

Hey all,

I’ve been really quiet lately, mostly just sharing bits of writing from my recovery.

I’ve started to get back into the woods, even though it often feels like walking on nails.

My ankles & right knee are still like crockery.

Some days I can walk for an hour; others, I’m lucky to get 5 mins from the car.

Still, I’m incredibly grateful to even be alive. I feel very blessed.

I hope to share new work soon.

⤵️ A fond memory ❤️🌳

A lush summer forest scene in the rain, captured just as the cloud begins to lift out of the woods. It creates a beautiful atmosphere that lasts only a few moments.

The 30-minute noticing workout via Austin Kleon [Shared]

Here is a slide from my friend Bill Keaggy’s TEDx talk, “How to Find Attention, Mindfulness, and Creativity in the Ordinary.”

After going through some of his own creative work — I highly recommend his books 50 Sad Chairs and Milk, Eggs, Vodka — and the work of others, Bill suggests a very simple 30-minute workout for everyone:

Walk around. Pay attention. Take pictures.

https://welchwrite.com/blog/2025/07/09/the-30-minute-noticing-workout-via-austin-kleon-shared/

The image features a blue background with white text and drawings. At the top, the title "THE 30-MINUTE NOTICING WORKOUT" is prominently displayed. Below the title, there are three steps illustrated with arrows connecting them. The first step is a circle labeled "WALK AROUND," the second step is a triangle labeled "PAY ATTENTION," and the third step is a rectangle labeled "TAKE PICTURES." A stick figure is depicted taking a picture in the "TAKE PICTURES" step. The overall design is simple and uses a hand-drawn style, suggesting a casual and approachable method for engaging in mindful observation. Provided by @altbot, generated privately and locally using Ovis2-8B

The most useful thing I've gotten from is peace of mind. By managing my own tech stack I know that if if my budgeting app breaks it's because the cat knocked my Raspberry Pi on the floor again, not because an investment bank bought my data and asset stripped the SaaS provider I was relying on.

The benefits to and that bringing basic computing needs back under my control has cannot be overstated.