your popcorn post came across my feed just when I had lamented the lack of microwave/counter space for one in my new house (weāre of the nutritional-yeast-on-top denomination of popcorn people)
Nutritional yeast on popcorn is so yummy!! I can never describe the flavor to anyone but I suppose if you know it when youāve tried it.
I sometimes wonder if I could live without a microwave again (even though I donāt even use mine all that much).
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Thanks for writing this. Iāve thought about blogging on the same topic before as well (see also The Web is Fantastic Actually). When people paint with a broad brush about digital minimalism, one of my concerns is that they neglect to identify the specific patterns and mechanisms that can make social platforms and other screen use so detrimental. Itās like if someone decided to critique the sports gambling industry by decrying the general concept of sports.
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I updated my Junited post and also posted about making my own papercraft template and the results:
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Itās like if someone decided to critique the sports gambling industry by decrying the general concept of sports.
Fully agreed. In an earlier draft of my post, I made a similar comparison. To me, suggesting that everyone with a smartphone addiction must stay away from all screens of any kind because they can lead to setbacks would be a bit like telling someone recovering from years of alcohol abuse that they can never set foot in any restaurant ever again, ābecause restaurants sell booze, and that could trigger you.ā That might be true in some cases, but certainly not all.
One of my other bugbears about the communityās anti-screen fixation is that thereās generally much less attention paid to addressing the common root causes of aimless scrolling. Someone who spends 10+ hours a day on their phone will most likely not be magically transformed into a healthy, happy individual the moment they buy a dumb Nokia flip phone, a Walkman, an expensive e-ink typewriter, a Canon point-and-shoot, and a cute little fanny pack in which to store all this screen-free retrotech. Thereās usually something missing in our lives (whether it be lack of connection, lack of purpose, etc.) that makes us more susceptible to problematic smartphone use ā¦ definitely try to reduce the smartphone use, by all means, but just as much effort and focus (if not more so) should be granted to addressing the contributing factors!
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I have a son, and thereās a lot of pressure on reducing screen time for kids as well, which I think is similarly over-generalizing as well. Our kid loves ms rachel, thomas and friends, leap frog, and recently weāve started showing him movies at night. These videos are demonstrably helping him understand letters and words, etc and moat recently even following along with plots and recognizing who the good guys vs bad guys are. These are videos designed for kids with modern practices on how to educate kids, after all!
Like, I think people took concerns over autoplaying yt kids or having so much screen time the kids donāt have time to play outside or with friends, and decided the answer was extreme rules like āno screen time at ali until 2 years oidā (or even older).
For what itās worth, the AAP used to have blanket bans until a certain age and then a hours per week limit until another age, but theyāve made new suggestions earlier this year with no blanket screen time restrictions and instead nuanced suggestions for every age range:
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It looks great, dithering notwithstanding! Do you think youād ever post the template online for others to make? I love doing a bit of papercraft every now and then and Iāve got some that I designed up on my site as well.
Thank you so much! I didnāt think anyone would be interested but I can try to clean up the template a bit (there were things I had to tweak on the fly after printing haha) and post it!
Iāve looked at your site so many times but I donāt think Iāve seen your templates, Iāll go take a look! Iām trying to get back into the hobby because itās something I really enjoy.
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Youāre welcome! Iām super curious to see how the eyes part works, and I love moths, so I would definitely make one!
And hey thatās fair, lol. My site is a mess right now. Iāve got it in my Resources & Freebies > Printables section:
As an alcoholic we call it the āhole in the soulā weāre trying to fill with an addictive behavior.
I struggle with addictive behavior to screens but not all addictions require abstinence (ex disordered eating). Thatās my big criticism of r/digitalminimalism - the reduction of addictions to something like alcoholism. Like you, my website (and some screen blockers) has done a lot to help me use tech in ways that fill my enjoyment of engaging with technology while engaging in personal growth through learning new skills and practicing writing. That, in turn, leaves me more fulfilled and less interested in mindless scrolling.
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The eyes are separate pieces that are set back a little bit from the wings! Iām on mobile right now, but if you Google āfollowing eyesā or similar, youāll see what I mean. :D Itās a neat trick and people do some very cool stuff with it.
I realised that Iād actually seen yours! Iād even emailed myself a link becauseI love The Sims and it made me feel so nostalgic. I just forgot it was yours and didnāt put two and two together when you mentioned it, haha.
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Exactly, I feel like there is a fundamental lack of community and connection if someone is using there phone for 10+ hours per day. But thats just what I think.
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Best Son and I saw She Kills Monsters at one of the local community colleges and we both really enjoyed it! I didnāt think I was a theater person but weāve gone to several shows put on by this theater department and weāve enjoyed every one.
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This weekās tiara post is a little different. Instead of something delightfully gaudy, this week I have an Epileptiform Tiara for you all.
(Itās made from brain waves! 
)
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Wonderful post. This is exactly why Iām such a loud advocate for the IndieWeb! Moving from exploitative, misery-creating corporate social media to our own joyful web infrastructure is far more sensible than throwing away the technologies as a whole.
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I made a post talking about making a new āmascotā/icon for myself (for my artist persona/brand) - itās been something that Iāve been wanting to do but wanted to think through what fits my style.
for a little bit of further context I have an older blog post from january that reviews the artist alley I did and shows my overall table aesthetic.
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I love him!!!
I definitely had a similar thought process coming up with my mascot for conventions, I wanted her to be simple/memorable shape-wise, and easy to draw.
I wrote about my hopes for the future of Doctor Who. I struggled a lot with the conclusion of this post, and I donāt think I captured all my Who-related thoughts adequately. But itās something.
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Just looked at your table photos and love your mascot too! Itās so cute and fits your aesthetic so well!! I love how youāve set up your signage too. I actually also just saw your blog post and am now reading it - I always love seeing the behind the scenes thoughts about everyoneās designs.
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