My brain doesn’t really retain much info lately. I get easily overwhelmed and lose track of pretty much everything. A while back I rediscovered the bulletjournal and after some initial try-outs in my Hobonichi Cousin I found that the A5-size currently doesn’t work for me. Too big or too heavy, not sure which one(probably both), but my hands and wrist start hurting a lot when I use it. The Cousin now lives on my desk and I don’t spend time at my desk anymore. I purchased a pocket Leuchtturm1917 notebook (in ‘Berry’, a nice warm pink) and luckily, my previous experience with a (several years old) Leuchtturm notebook proved non-standard. That notebook feathered and bled through like crazy! Several people told me (and showed photos) of their current notebooks, and those didn’t bleed much if at all, and no noticeable feathering. So I took the plunge and it paid off.

The pocket size (close to A6) fits my pocket (any pocket!) and bags easily and feels very light. After using it for a month I added a small Quiver to it, even though I had also stuck a penloop on it already. The penloop proved a bit tight for my favourite pens, I needed something better and I love the Quiver on my A5 notebook. I inked up the Pelikan M205 Amethyst with Rohrer & Klingner Scabiosa and the Pelikan M205 transparant blue with Rohrer & Klingner Salix. I love these ink, but, as most iron-gall-inks, they write a bit on the dry side (or should I say, a lot.). At first I had an F-nib on the Amethyst, and that worked great! The transparant blue had an M-nib and Salix gushed out of that one. I don’t know what happened but I found it hard to write with. I swapped the nibs, and Scabiosa still wrote great. Salix, however, decided it did not like the F-nib and decided to go back to non-gusher-very-dry. I swapped nibs with my other Pelikan (never hurts to have more, right?) and this time, it seemed more tame. Not sure if the first M-nib has a slightly bigger feed, or I did something weird with cleaning. Both of them now write very nicely with the M-nibs.

I inked up the Parker Vector with Pelikan Blue Black (vintage, no idea if it contains iron-gall, it behaves like it) a while back because I read somewhere that the vector plays nice with dry/iron-gall inks. It did play nice! After a while I dumped some leftover Shaeffer Turquoise in the cartridge to bring the blue back into blueblack and it turned into a lovely teal and still writes like a dream.

I have a thing for iron-gall inks. I also have a thing for blueblacks, apparently. How many could one person possible need… (let me count: Pelikan, ESSRI, Diamine Registrar’s, Salix, and I still want Platinum Blueblack…)

For extra fun, I inked up the Lamy 2000 BB with J.Herbin Emerald Chivor and even that doesn’t bleed through.

I’ve used the bulletjournal nearly everyday this year. I keep it simply, I write down a few to-do’s for the day (not too many to prevent overwhelmedness) and I keep track of Nano’s food. I need the defrost it in time, and to aid proper timing I keep a list of what I have in the fridge (= ready to eat) and what I have in the freezer. In the evening I glance at the list and I’ll see instantly if I need to transfer something so the poor dog doesn’t starve due to poor planning on my side. I also keep a list of things I want to buy (to prevent mindless (over)spending) and a waiting-for list for whatever should come in the mail (usually dogfood and vitamins). So far it has worked well, I feel less lost and like having something to - sometimes literally - hold on to. I like the A6 a lot, it can go anywhere with me.

“Supercute bat!”

How I did it: Visited a petting zoo that had bats. They let us touch and pet the animals and I also touched a skunk and an armadillo. It helps that he knew ‘people’ and only eats fruit.

It took me 1 day.

It made me Happy

☺

See more progress on: hold a bat

I have taken some time recently to work out what works best for me and my planner. I have a Leuchtturm1917 Weekly Planner, and though I love the paper -- almost all my fountainpens and inks work great on it -- the layout of the week has started to bug me. I just can't do only three lines on a Saturday / Sunday...

So, I once again ordered a Plannerism Planner, in teal. It has super-awesome weekly layout! Every day gets a full column so no more trying to squeeze a lot of stuff into a tiny box!

One thing I do want to bring to this PlPl: in the Leuchtturm, whenever I wrote down an appointment (medical, dinner with friends, visiting family) I'd draw a tiny line in the matching colour on the annual overview pages. I colour-code my type of appointments and this makes it very easy to see, at a glance, if I risk overbooking myself. It also lets me use my pink glitter gell-pen (FTW!) to mark days that I don't want to do anything more in.

So awesome!

See more progress on: fly in a small plane

I bought new paper to draw on, so I decided to do a quick sketch to see if it works. It handles the ink and paint nicely, though next time I need to wait just a bit longer before I erased my pencilmarkings after I inked…

Tiny Nano :)

It should decompose in two weeks. We shall see...

It's slightly cooler in the hallway so she prefers to lie there.

Or swim in the muddy stream.

According to lore, they have to be invited in. Within the sacred space of your home, they can not harm you. They can not suck one drop of your precious life-giving blood unless you open the door and invite them past your threshold.

If your time, your attention, and your purpose are not the very essence of what life is, then what is? If where you commit your time, attention, and purpose is not sacred space, then why isn't it? And if those items that seek to take from those things are not vampires, then what are they?

Most importantly, why are you inviting them in?

An early adopter seeks out new ideas and makes them work.

An adapter, on the other hand, puts up with what he has to, begrudgingly.

-- Seth's Blog: Adopt vs. adapt

I've spent a few days away from my flat while my kitchen went through a demolition and a rebuilding phase. It still needs a little work. The back-wall will get tiled with hardened glass tiles (big ones, five in total.thumbnail.jpg "img I've spent a few days away from my flat while my kitchen went through a demolition and a rebuilding phase. It still needs a little work. The back-wall will get tiled with hardened glass tiles (big ones, five in total.jpg) and the oven will go in the unfinished cabinet on the left.

We'll also do some rearranging of the bookcase and the table. The table will go where the bookcase now stands, and vice versa.

I've used my kitchen for a few days now and it makes me very happy. The hob cleans easily, as does the rest. The drawers also work great (never again will I tolerate cabinets there).

Compared to my previous kitchen this one looks much brighter which makes it very nice to work in.

We've also installed a one-hand-mixer tap which makes it easier on my hands. It does look a lot like a regular handle, which I like.

My hands, wrist and elbows have given me issues lately, at least partly due to my (intensive) laptop use. I used to have this really awesome keyboard at work, and despite its price I decided to buy it. I see it as an investment in my body / health and I know it relieves some of my pain. Hopefully it arrives soon.

For the curious geeks among you: I bought the Kinesis Advantage USB keyboard (black, with Dvorak layout)

no-one else can determine meaning for anyone else

-- David Allen

I spent the past ten days without my laptop, very interesting. I had my trusty EEE pc and my phone to fall back on, however, mostly just for the basics. My workflow on my macbook did not fit the EEE (for one, I really missed TextExpander)

I mostly rested, having an RA-flare, and did some decluttering (which I intend to continue). I also worked out a small plan to start a new sleeping-schedule. After trying for months to fit back in the 'normal world' I decided to revisit my afternoon naps. Not sure if I feel better, but I like the idea of getting up early, do stuff, then go to have a three or four hour nap in the afternoon and then do things in the evening as well. None of that power-nap stuff, I need solid hours. This way, I hope to spread my energy more evenly and to still participate in the 'normal world'.

I tried it out today, and though I feel sleepy and tired and slightly confused, I did very much enjoy my afternoon nap. I also made a drawing this morning, during my first wake. Always good :)