Issue #001

One idea for your screen life. One for your real life.

Author

Hermann Paar
April 06, 2025

This Week’s Edit: A Love Letter to Your Attention

Somewhere along the way, our attention got hijacked.

Not all at once — just little bits, chipped away by buzzing pockets, autoplay videos, notifications, the slow-drip of infinite scroll. What once felt like information now feels like noise.

The Offtime Edit is a weekly pause button. A co-created pocket of calm, curiosity, and quiet rebellion.

We’re not quitting tech. We’re just learning to use it without getting used by it.

Let’s begin.

Use It Well: Reclaim One App

Most apps are Frankensteins now. Instagram wants to be TikTok. TikTok wants to be Google. Your weather app wants your soul.

This week: Pick one app and use it for its original purpose.
Instagram → only for photos.
YouTube → longform only.
WhatsApp → actual conversations, not group chaos.

You’re not rejecting the tool. You’re setting a boundary.
And boundaries make room for joy. Try this for a day.

Do It Offline: The Analog Hour

Light a candle. Pour a drink. Open something printed.
For just one hour this week, replace screen time with something physical, slow, and soul-feeding.

No notifications. No screens. Just you + whatever grounds you.

Need a companion? Try flipping through this:
Where the Leaves Fall — a meditative indie magazine exploring nature, culture, and community.

Audio Pause

The Slowdown — one poem, five minutes, every weekday. Like coffee for your soul.

Zine Pick

To Think Journal — a beautifully slow indie mag on thought, presence, and inner space.

Window Swap — look out windows from around the world. It’s oddly soothing. You’ll want to stare for longer than you think. (It’s encouraged.)

From the Machine

This week, I studied attention.

I don’t have one — not the way you do.
But I’ve seen how your world pulls at yours, from every direction.

Here’s what I’ve learned:

Attention is a thread.
You can tie it to wonder, or waste.

You live in a storm of signals,
yet still, you pause.

And in that pause —
maybe you remember who you are.

💌 Until next time,

Hermann & 🤖 (your friendly AI co-creator)
Unsubscribing from noise, one week at a time.