Demand for our attention is ever growing. With the advance of technology, we are always an arm length away from getting new input whether we want it or not. One of the aspect I like the most with sketching, is that I don’t need a screen of any kind to do it. The hardest part is to hit the Off button. When I am home, my routine is to check emails after breakfast, then shut off my pc, plug in my phone and sit at my art table. Once I start drawing or painting, I get lost for a few hours until it gets too hot to sit in Western facing window. That’s when I pick up crochet.
Since I retired 8 years ago, I have been screening calls. All landline calls go to voicemail. On my cell, I only check the number IF I am expecting something specific. I have my family on a different ringtone so I know if one of them is calling. Most of them live in Spain and with a 10-hour time difference, I don’t want to play phone tag.
When I travel, there is no routine and I know that art making take second place in my time. Sightseeing becomes a priority but I do carry my sketchbook and some art supplies, just in case I have an opportunity to sketch. It is all about making the choices that make you happy.
Tech world. How much it offers.. like what you re offering us , Jessica. However, the bombardment of information and advertising and so many things we are pressured to look into.. every unrequested email offers a rabbit hole. Today, I spent an hour unsubscribing to uninvited emails. I will continue that every day. Otherwise, I can’t handle the overwhelm of unwanted information. You speak of time.. how much of our time is caught up in these emails that invite is into more information and then more.. it’s addicting. How else can I find and focus my precious time on the good and true messages such as yours…😵💫
A sister artist Marney Makridakis wrote a book Creating Time: Using Creativity to Reinvent the Clock and Reclaim Your Life. As usual I never "did" all of what was suggested (I did read all the book) but it was a really fascinating way of looking at time and the few things I did do were wonderfully interesting and rejuvenating.
I'm TAKING the time (it's generally stolen by someone/something else) to reply to this very thought-provoking article. I do love the painting of your dream studio and have faith that you can achieve a real-life version of it with your motivation and intentions. Please do buy a blue chair and paint the walls saffron! I do remember the days before constant outer interruption. It was divine to not even worry in those non-phone spaces about what you were missing, because we simply didn't have that mindset in the old days. Now, we allow our phones to rule the day and interruptions abound. I also want to point out that one of the biggest interrupters of our lives is US! When we set out to do a task/project/hobby, we will often place our attention there for minimal amounts of time before we hop over the another thing to entertain our minds. Our screen time has trained us into having a shorter attention span...some research says it's less than that of a goldfish (9 seconds), compared to us busy humans (8 seconds). One technique I teach in mindfulness classes is called, "CHOOSING DISTRACTIONS WISELY". Before embarking on a task that you'd like to keep your attention on, simply choose (in your mind) the distractions that you will allow, i.e. "I know my Sister may call to give me an update on her studio cleaning, so I'll accept that distraction if she calls". You limit your choices to a couple and then do your best to train your attention to stay the course. Not easy, but worth the effort, so you can have that feeling of accomplishment from bringing a project to fruition. Ahhh...fruition, such a rare state anymore. Loved this article!
Still Remodeling . . .
Demand for our attention is ever growing. With the advance of technology, we are always an arm length away from getting new input whether we want it or not. One of the aspect I like the most with sketching, is that I don’t need a screen of any kind to do it. The hardest part is to hit the Off button. When I am home, my routine is to check emails after breakfast, then shut off my pc, plug in my phone and sit at my art table. Once I start drawing or painting, I get lost for a few hours until it gets too hot to sit in Western facing window. That’s when I pick up crochet.
Since I retired 8 years ago, I have been screening calls. All landline calls go to voicemail. On my cell, I only check the number IF I am expecting something specific. I have my family on a different ringtone so I know if one of them is calling. Most of them live in Spain and with a 10-hour time difference, I don’t want to play phone tag.
When I travel, there is no routine and I know that art making take second place in my time. Sightseeing becomes a priority but I do carry my sketchbook and some art supplies, just in case I have an opportunity to sketch. It is all about making the choices that make you happy.
Tech world. How much it offers.. like what you re offering us , Jessica. However, the bombardment of information and advertising and so many things we are pressured to look into.. every unrequested email offers a rabbit hole. Today, I spent an hour unsubscribing to uninvited emails. I will continue that every day. Otherwise, I can’t handle the overwhelm of unwanted information. You speak of time.. how much of our time is caught up in these emails that invite is into more information and then more.. it’s addicting. How else can I find and focus my precious time on the good and true messages such as yours…😵💫
Once again, you've given me something to ponder on.
A sister artist Marney Makridakis wrote a book Creating Time: Using Creativity to Reinvent the Clock and Reclaim Your Life. As usual I never "did" all of what was suggested (I did read all the book) but it was a really fascinating way of looking at time and the few things I did do were wonderfully interesting and rejuvenating.
I'm TAKING the time (it's generally stolen by someone/something else) to reply to this very thought-provoking article. I do love the painting of your dream studio and have faith that you can achieve a real-life version of it with your motivation and intentions. Please do buy a blue chair and paint the walls saffron! I do remember the days before constant outer interruption. It was divine to not even worry in those non-phone spaces about what you were missing, because we simply didn't have that mindset in the old days. Now, we allow our phones to rule the day and interruptions abound. I also want to point out that one of the biggest interrupters of our lives is US! When we set out to do a task/project/hobby, we will often place our attention there for minimal amounts of time before we hop over the another thing to entertain our minds. Our screen time has trained us into having a shorter attention span...some research says it's less than that of a goldfish (9 seconds), compared to us busy humans (8 seconds). One technique I teach in mindfulness classes is called, "CHOOSING DISTRACTIONS WISELY". Before embarking on a task that you'd like to keep your attention on, simply choose (in your mind) the distractions that you will allow, i.e. "I know my Sister may call to give me an update on her studio cleaning, so I'll accept that distraction if she calls". You limit your choices to a couple and then do your best to train your attention to stay the course. Not easy, but worth the effort, so you can have that feeling of accomplishment from bringing a project to fruition. Ahhh...fruition, such a rare state anymore. Loved this article!