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Ask HN: Where does your mind wander to?

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Re: Ask HN: Where does your mind wander to?

#31

Post by sshine »

cecilpl2 wrote: post #25

Money, quantum physics, the nature of reality, the nature of consciousness, sex, recent conversations I've had, admiring the beauty of nature, thinking about trips I want to take...

So close to mine:

Accounting, cryptography, assessing if the top-most neglected chore can still be snoozed, calculating how long until I need to switch context (may motivate, may re-assess urgency of neglected chores), "I need a break" (hacker news), sex, simulating one of many ongoing conversations, "I'm so happy I have X" (with X = my balcony, my couch, my cat, my bike), "Did my cat jump off the balcony?"

Interestingly, answering this question by doing a scan over where my mind wanders to actually blocks my mind from wandering, and so I ended up accidentally meditating.

Re: Ask HN: Where does your mind wander to?

#32

Post by jackthetab »

ghost_ wrote: post #5

Lately I've started to dabble with digital art and 'painting' and learning to draw on an iPad. When away from electronics (and the iPad), I now keep thinking of what I'd like to paint for my next masterpiece and coming up with ideas for future paintings in my mind. It's incredibly refreshing, and also helps me sleep.

Any advice on how to (successfully) get started?

I've been trying to do the same only to find the whole thing frustrating af. My goal right now is to A) draw wireframes of websites, B) workflows (similar to wireframes with added arrows), and C) an image of Calvin of C&H fame.

I've used Procreate, Excalidraw, OneNote, Notability, etc.

All of the tutorials are like "Here is where you can select a canvas. Here is where you can select brushes. Let's choose this brush..." (Why?) "Then change the setting to this..." (again, why?). I'm beginning to hate videos in my search results.

If I want to actually accomplish one of these drawings, I pick up a pad of paper and pencil and I'm done in 60 seconds for wireframes, five minutes for Calvin. I have yet to be able to do it after hours on my iPad.

Re: Ask HN: Where does your mind wander to?

#33

Post by AlwaysRock »

Unfortunately, I don't let my mind wander much anymore. I've got ADHD so my mind races quite a bit by default. For years I've listened to audiobooks or podcasts when I'm "doing nothing" which is better than my mind wandering in unwanted directions.

I lose a little bit of random creativity from my mind wandering here and there but its worth it for the amount of books/podcasts I'm able to get through that help in other ways.

Re: Ask HN: Where does your mind wander to?

#34

Post by WHA8m »

jvanderbot wrote: post #13

- On the malleability of culture, and the absolutely temporary nature of the world order that we think is stable. - On interstellar travel, and how completely bonkers it would be to ride on a steadily-degrading spaceship for a decade, with just enough fuel to stop when you get there, and no more. And what it might take to get our civilization to care enough to try (seems like a terrible calamity is the only way). - I…

> I firmly believe that there is a sequence of words that [...] would convince anyone of anything.

What does make you think that? Have you seen or experienced something like this before?

Your thought/ idea makes perfect sense to me and there surely is more potential to transfer ideas/ ideologies/ etc more compact than we do most of the time. I too, don't believe in good and evil humans but that everyone is capable of everything (decision-, not skill-wise). But 1000 words would be quite frustrating, because if I (a random on the internet/ on a party/ or elsewhere) am able to 'flip' you, what's gonna stop the next random dude from flipping you back over. If it's that easy to make you change your opinion, it is not sustainable. As I'm writing this, I realized, this is the very reason I stopped discussing with anyone with whom I don't get value out of myself as well. It's just not worth it - at least for people that aren't close to me.

Re: Ask HN: Where does your mind wander to?

#36

Post by WHA8m »

ryzvonusef wrote: post #20

escaping! Not sure where to , but away from here. Also, perhaps not that unrelated, escaping into fantasy worlds, usually the last thing I read. Some times I make my own, and set stories in them.

There is a term for it: 'world-building'. If you want to increase your procrastination efficiency, there are a lot of resources about it online (:

Re: Ask HN: Where does your mind wander to?

#38

Post by inetsee »

SemanticStrengh wrote: post #16
DeathArrow wrote: post #11

Sex, booze, sex, friends, sex,family, sex, books, sex, traveling, sex, science, sex, art, sex, tech, sex, movies, sex, art, sex, sociology, sex, anthropology, sex, big problems of the humankind, sex. In that order. Sometimes I wonder if an Eskimo girl would wear a pink finger ring while listening to Irish folk music while traveling between Mombasa and Easter Island for a conference about mouses who wear green umbrell…

> an Eskimo girl would wear a pink finger ring while listening to Irish folk music while traveling between Mombasa and Easter Island for a conference about mouses who wear green umbrellas. any good absurd movies to recommend anyone? This seems like a good starting point for a scenario

Sounds like a good scenario for a screenplay for a surrealist movie.

Re: Ask HN: Where does your mind wander to?

#39

Post by rsyring »

Whatever is currently going wrong the most...and I hate it.

When I don't have something to focus on, I usually dwell on whatever problems I'm aware of that are the most emotionally troubling. That's often challenges I face as a business owner, relational conflict with someone I care about, ways I'd like to improve myself or change but can't/won't, etc.

This results in a significant toll on my mental and emotional faculties/health. Simply resting, bring at peace, doesn't seem possible. I chalk this up to my analytical mindset, which helps me greatly in my development efforts, being unable to disengage despite knowing full well there is nothing I can do to change most of it. That and/or being prone to anxiety. Not sure it even matters why, it's clearly baked into my "wiring" somewhere.

Due to this dynamic, I almost always prefer to have something to engage with. Programming, phone (usually here or news), TV, cards with family, books, etc. I don't like that I compulsively reach for my phone now and have to "escape" to these distractions, but as I've weighed the pros and cons, this seems better than the alternative of incessantly dwelling on the negatives.

Re: Ask HN: Where does your mind wander to?

#40

Post by gnulinux »

sharkweek wrote: post #23

Oh I got the perfect answer for this one. As someone who (now after about a year of therapy a while back) has my OCD managed, let me tell you what my brain still does with a moment of free time: Visualizes the worst possible scenario of any situation I’m in! Standing in line to get coffee: What happens if I blurt out a racial slur randomly in here? Or what if someone walks in with a gun? What if someone put poison in…

I also have OCD in the form of obsessive thoughts and had a very similar experience. Brain just computes extremely random, irrelevant scenarios throughout the day putting tons of serious effort, and it's impossible to stop. Thanks to CBT I learned how to deal with them, and for the most part it doesn't affect my life anymore, which is nice.
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