Week 15, 2022 — Tucked away at home

I'm enjoying being home after two weeks on the road. Time to focus on a big delivery, go out a couple of nights and luxuriate in sleeping in.

I'm observing that part of my collection of art/design books have become regulars that I drawn on for inspiration. I had two different occasions this week, for a new website and to provide ideas for a framework-in-progress. Methodology-type books are nice to have on Kindle but there are moments in the creative process that call for pulling off a familiar book from the bookshelf and flipping through it.

Week 14, 2022 - Mountains and valleys

I traveled from Barcelona to northern Italy for By Design or Disaster, the annual conference of the MA program in Eco-Social Design at the Free University of Bozen-Bolzano. This year’s theme was Radical Care - the question is not only how to care practically today, but how to create conditions that allow all to care?.

The trip to and back were long and complicated, and I got mask sores for the first time in my life. But hoisting a duffel backpack (my kit is dialed in!) and crossing country borders by train, not needing power adapters or incurring roaming charges, with new food to try and all kinds of bars and restaurants to drop into… this has become an integral part of my life in Paris - France - Europe and it’s a wondrous thing.

The conference experience was so rich, with lots of goosebumps, tears and dancing. Part of the magic was how remote it was. Where else would one encounter and grapple with these kinds of ideas with people who are committed to them, than an ex-military barrack with a layered history in a corner of the world that I didn't know existed until a few weeks ago? And mostly organized by a handful of international students? I think most of us made the trip without really knowing what we were getting into - but not needing to, either. We went home with lots of ideas but most importantly a sense of hope, protecting its flickering flame against the forces of an often-cruel world.

Week 46, 2021 - A full week

On Monday, I took the train down to the French Pyrenees. I'm spinning up a project there with a friend which requires a bit of luck. We have a lot of momentum right now and I'm hopeful we can keep it going! Afterwards, I headed further south to Barcelona to set up a design project for next year. I should know in a few days what kind of commitment will be feasible.

Among all that, I graduated from my eight-month coach training program. I'm taking time for new learnings to sink in - it'll be good to take a few months for harvesting and celebration.

It feels a bit surreal to be planting so many saplings for next year.

Week 45, 2021 - Melancholic fall

I just sent out a Postcard for the first time in many, many months, and am reflecting on why it took so much out of me to get to a sendable e-mail.

With a personal e-mail, it's fair to expect a response. With a group e-mail, it's fair to expect to be opened. With a company newsletter, it's fair to expect to be ignored or not even noticed.

With personal newsletters, it feels like there's nowhere to hide. Your text arrives in someone's inbox, probably in the chaotic Promotions tab, quivering with hope that they'll open it. Maybe even read it, and spend a few moments thinking about it. Having access to analytics amps up the pressure, as it gives one answer to the question; am I just adding to the noise?

But it's good. Good to learn to push through that discomfort.

Man, sometimes it takes you a long time to sound like yourself. - Miles Davis

I'm taking baby steps to inhabit new ways of showing up in the world, with friends new and old. It's been an emotional few weeks and I'm glad to know enough now the importance of taking space for rest and restoration.

Week 39, 2021 - The city as a playground

October has crept up on us and the winds are starting to get chilly. This week, I recovered from a bad cold and managed to venture out with friends to see "Arc de Triomphe, Wrapped" and the Georgia O'Keefe retrospective at the Pompidou. I also caught up with a friend visiting town - we took a long walk in Montmartre and ducked into a cafe for hot chocolate when the rain started to fall. What great reminders of the abundance that a city like Paris has to offer.

Here and there, I'm edging towards making plans for the end of the year. But let me resist for a few weeks more, to enjoy the liminal fall season and take in the freedom of being home, being at ease in our city.

Week 36, 2021 - Heading home soon

A passport kerfuffle turned this into an unplanned, extra week in Tokyo. It meant a couple of missed lunches and drinks in Paris and one 3am call but once I got over the feeling of being stranded, it turned out to be a blessing in disguise. I enjoyed a few more in-person coffees, museum visits, a bike ride and more time with my family. As a special bonus, the oranthaamus flowers (flagrant olive tree) started to bloom. This is my favorite scent in the world. Because I always visit in the summer and winter seasons, it’s been six? years since I was in the same city when they bloom for a few weeks in the autumn. What a gorgeous surprise!

The coaching training is chugging along and I’m learning so much. My mentor says to forget about “arriving” anywhere, that I’m already there, wherever that is, doing the work and that’s what it’ll continue to be. Yes, and I’m still expecting to feel some sort of “I’ve got this” at some point. Until I’m hit over the head with the next dimension of learning, of course… All in all, I find myself really enjoying the work of coaching. For a moment in time, the only responsibility I have in the world is to be present for the person in front of me. There is liberation in that. And while my skills for 1-1 coaching is in its infancy, what I’ve already learned so far is already paying dividends in all kinds of work conversations.

Week 34, 2021 - Spacious strategies

When you don’t have an aircon: Take a nap when it gets too hot, after eating a big slice of watermelon.

When you want to give people something nice to wander in: Plant sunflowers, lots and lots of sunflowers, and some arrows to invite walking.

Make accessible little things that make a big difference, with no questions asked: ice pillows, bug repellent, crocs at all of the doors.

For dark hallways, nooks and crannies: lights that turn on and off automatically, with the right lightbulb chosen for each space

Bring nature inside: tiny vases in corners and bookshelves where the eye might rest

Week 33, 2021 - Laying low

I’m now in Tokyo under a government mandated quarantine that’s deployed consumer technology to scale tracking and surveillance of individuals who fly into Japan. It’s an app-based check-in system, with random notifications and video calls throughout the day. I’m almost through the two week period and then I will continue socially distancing without being managed by an app.

My coaching training is in full swing. I have practice clients booked for the next two months, with whom I’ll meet weekly. I’ve found that as I started having open-hearted conversations with real people, my trepidation started to melt away. People have thoughts to sort out, decisions to make, and well, help is helpful. And I’m blessed with a strong support system through the program and energizing partnerships with some of my cohort peers, so things are in a good place.

I dream of the mountains, and being able to walk out barefoot onto dewey grass.

Week 22, 2021 - Seeking sunlight and space

My newsletter took over the space reserved as my writing outlet, pushing out my weeknotes. I’m taking back that space, after ten weeks of disarray and a realization that what I thought was an established habit needs watchful protection.

Since the last weeknote, I’ve moved apartments, started a new company (kind of), joined another (kind of) and started on a training program for coaching. I’ve had a couple of projects start and a couple wind down. I’ve also had an uptick in non-digital social interaction, with France loosening up on Covid measures. Things are moving.

The friction of the physical world that must be dealt with to get myself to a certain location at a certain time in a certain state of mind and physical presentation is immense. I’m quite at home in semi-hermit mode, turning up for long and buzzing hours of online exchange and turning off with a simple click of the “hang up” button. I thrive in hyper-active asynchronous mode, being able to catch or pass the ball at any moment that feels most alive.

Reflecting on the past few weeks, I see that the increased hubbub of the external world has brought about a re-appreciation of the solitude and comfort of home. I’m reading a wider variety of books, and dreaming of escaping the busy city.

Week 12, 2021 - Small pauses

Writing these Weeknotes for about nine months made it easier to start my newsletter. But I sent out two Postcards in three weeks and it took up all of my capacity for writing! That was unexpected. But I hadn’t really thought about it, and it does make sense in hindsight. They are both forms of public journalling at the end of the day.

I want to give a 3-4 week cadence for Postcards a fair shot. At the same time, The Weeknotes have their own purpose, which is very dear to me. I’ll go with the flow and trust that I’ll keep writing here, even if it’s not every week.