Apps, a bag of chips and a chocolate bar

One of my recent goals is #8. Find out how I want to live my life (or be unhappy forever). Well, for starters I found out something that might be a trigger into the 'be unhappy forever' part.

I am trying to reduce my usage of my smartphone. And with that I don't mean I try to call less, no, I mean I try to reduce myself looking at all kinds of information that are in no way a priority in my life.

The funny thing is, I am trying to develop more awareness in my life. So I was trying to do more calming things. So instead of grabbing my phone while waiting for a piece of software to compile I would just sit there, breathe, relax, move around a bit, whatever. And it actually works calming (duh...).

But, of course, as it is with old habits; they die slowly. So every now and then I would still find myself in the situation of me looking at my smartphone, absorbing information I don't need. Which puts a real effort on my brain making me ever more aware the human brain is only compatible with so much (relevant, hehe) information at a time.

The funny thing is, I actually start to feel bad when I loose time on this silly thing. And then the idea struck, it's like a bag of chips. Or a chocolate bar. I don't eat those things that much, but every now and then I get an appetite for them and eat it. Nothing wrong with that. But what if this was really troubling and I would empty three bags of chips and two chocolate bars into my stomach on a daily basis? Then there would be a need to at least cut down on it a bit. The thing is, you don't NEED them. At all. It might be nice sometime, but there's no NEED for it. But... when I open up a bag of bar, chances are it's going down the hatch for the biggest part.

The problem with the interwebs and all these unsocial apps is this: they're a bottomless bag of unnecessary information. A never ending bar of crap. And the moment you DO put it down, you feel just as 'overfilled yet empty and lost' as when you had eaten the whole bag-and-bar.

The solution? Just as simple as with the chips: don't start with them. And if you can't control that, make sure you don't have them. I guess it's a bit overkill right now to get rid of my smartphone at all, but not having it within direct reach (meaning at least ten steps away from me) makes it a deliberate action to look at it, which is controllable.

And that, I think, is step one into living a better life. To regain actual control on what I can control. And to set other priorities in life. For me, these are: breath, be aware of how I feel, drink when thirsty, eat when hungry, sleep when tired. And all the others? Fuck them, not before the other priorities are met.

Tough talk, I know, and it will take a lot more time than I spend on it now, but I feel that this might be a next step into living a more fulfilling life. Who knows...