1.0 Summer

Hey, it’s Monday again! That means we’ve just had a weekend and at least here, it was probably the first real summer weekend. So of course I had to (start) with my summer-is-here media consumption rituals:

1. Read The Beach – which is a lot better than the movie. Of course I did see the movie before reading the novel, so yes, I do have Virginie Ledoyen in my head cinema when he talks about Françoise.
2. (Now this one is a lot more embarrassing.) Watch Blue Crush with the actresses’ commentary. I bought the DVD on a lark from a bargain bin a couple of years ago and for some reason the commentary is really pretty funny. Plus, you know – there being attractive young ladies in bathing suits with Hawaii as a backdrop doesn’t hurt.

2.0 Distraction

Apparently I have a lawn. I keep forgetting about it, because it’s too far away from the house to still get WiFi and is therefore not really useful for me at all. That doesn’t change the fact that it needs mowing and if I wouldn’t have been reminded that I do have a lawn, I would have forgotten about that, too.
So on Saturday, I mowed the lawn.

I will not pretend I enjoyed it. But I did hate it a tiny bit less than I thought I would, thanks to the magic of podcasts.
In fact, a lot of stuff I used to hate becomes bearable thanks to the magic of podcasts.

While this might be a good thing in aggregate, it might also be a bit of a problem: I hardly do anything anymore without making sure I am distracted by some kind of media. I listen to podcasts when I walk to town or when I clean the house and if I’m not doing that, then more often than not I am listening to some music. And while I sometimes to wander around without any real purpose behind it besides “being outside and moving,” it is never without something to keep my mind occupied. Apparently I am not the only person with that problem: The slow death of purposeless walking

People should go out and walk free of distractions, says Nicholson. “I do think there is something about walking mindfully. To actually be there and be in the moment and concentrate on what you are doing.”
And this means no music, no podcasts, no audiobooks. It might also mean going out alone.
CS Lewis thought that even talking could spoil the walk. “The only friend to walk with is one who so exactly shares your taste for each mood of the countryside that a glance, a halt, or at most a nudge, is enough to assure us that the pleasure is shared.”

I don’t know, but for me that sounds kind of scary.

---

Now for something completely different – I am looking for some good travel blogs, what are your favorites? Just reply with URLs, you don’t need to be nice about it. (Even though it’s nice to be nice.)
Dominik