[stylist] NY Times Article daydream

Thu Jan 5 21:16:10 UTC 2012

Brad,
Daydreaming does have to be kept in it's place -- generally, for me, that's
when I'm out walking. Before meetings or performances, what works for me is
some power thinking to get my head ready with the things I want to
accomplish clearly defined. Since I am basically a hermit, I really need to
get myself focused before stepping out into the real world. *grin*

I'm looking forward to your Steven King review. I've never read a thing he's
written, and I'm not a fan of horror, which is what I think of him as
writing. Anyway, lately, I've been thinking I should really read something
of his just to keep up some appearance of being well-read.
Donna

-----Original Message-----
From: stylist-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:stylist-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
Behalf Of Brad Dunsé
Sent: Thursday, January 05, 2012 3:26 PM
To: Writer's Division Mailing List
Subject: Re: [stylist] NY Times Article daydream

Donna,

As a business guy, sometimes that sort of 
daydream, run off at the head can be odd. Today I 
was pointedly more aware of it.  Once or twice a 
year I meet up with my campus contact person to 
go over stuff. I get there early  usually. Today 
I was a half hour early and was just vegging out, 
daydreaming about stuff and then I thought, 
"Dude, you better get it together in what you're 
going to talk about and stop this rambling 
thought." I find if I let myself do the daydream 
bit, trying to swing into business mode doesn't 
work. I'll come across as a complete idiot, 
carrying out a conversation about 
as   comfortable as showering with socks 
on.  Usually later  kicking myself for not asking 
about this or that. For me, the daydreams kind of 
lull my head into a different world that needs a 
bit of time to transition to  the sharp, firm 
handshake business meeting. As I sat there 
today  daydreaming before a meeting, just a 
little, 'grin', I thought, manh, if I could get 
paid to daydream, that'd be awesome. 'smile'. I 
thought of it because I'd been engrossed in a 
Stephen King book which I'll do a review of sorts 
when done. Never done a book review so that ought 
be interesting. At any rate daydreaming is 
definitely a good tool, and personally a land of 
no responsibility for me. It's the coming out of 
it and the realization I've got to do stuff that is a let down. 'big smile'.

Brad

On 1/5/2012  12:14 PM Donna Hill said...
>Brad,
>He's right on the money about the need for daydreaming or unconnected time.
>I think of it as having my brain in neutral, which I don't do enough
>anymore, in part because of my digital world.
>
>I often like to tell the story of how J.K. Rowling came up with the Harry
>Potter series. She was traveling by train without even a notebook to write
>in when she came up with the idea. The journey proved to be an essential
>part of the process, thinking through the plot angles and characters.
>
>Several years ago, I wrote an article for American Chronicle about the need
>for "empathetic thought" in the writing process. It's the same thing
really.
>
>
>I was happy to hear that some scholarly work is being done on such things.
>Thanks for sharing,
>Donna
>
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: stylist-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:stylist-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
>Behalf Of Brad Dunsé
>Sent: Thursday, January 05, 2012 7:35 AM
>To: Writer's Division Mailing List
>Subject: [stylist] NY Times Article daydream
>
>Per a recent topic here. Don't let the title
>diswade you, though it does deal with technology
>it also talks about daydream/creativity.
>
>BITS. Resolving to Practice Some iPhone Abstinence.
>
>By NICK BILTON. Email: bilton at nytimes.com. Last
>week, I drove to Pacifica, a beach community just
>south of San Francisco, where I climbed a large
>rocky hill as the sun descended on the horizon.
>It painted a typically astounding California
>sunset across the Pacific Ocean. What did I do next?
>
>What any normal person would do in 2011: I pulled
>out my iPhone and began snapping pictures to
>share on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.
>
>I spent 10 minutes trying to compose the perfect
>shot, moving my phone from side to side,
>adjusting light settings and picking the perfect filter.
>
>Then, I stopped. Here I was, watching this
>magnificent sunset, and all I could do is peer at
>it through a tiny four-inch screen.
>
>What's wrong with me? I thought. I can't seem to
>enjoy anything without trying to digitally
>capture it or spew it onto the Internet.
>
>Hence my New Year's resolution: In 2012, I plan
>to spend at least 30 minutes a day without my
>iPhone. Without Internet, Twitter, Facebook and
>my iPad. Spending a half-hour a day without
>electronics might sound easy for most, but for
>me, 30 unconnected minutes produces the same
>anxious feelings of a child left accidentally at the mall.
>
>I made this resolution out of a sense that I
>habitually reached for the iPhone even when I
>really didn't need to, when I might have just
>enjoyed an experience, like the sunset, without
>any technology. And after talking to people who
>do research on subjects like this, I realized
>that there were some good reasons to give up a little tech.
>
>For example, I was worried that if I did not
>capture that beautiful sunset and stuff it into my phone, I'd forget it.
>
>Even with something as beautiful as a sunset,
>forgetting is really important as a mental
>hygiene,' said Viktor Mayer-Schonberger, a
>professor of Internet governance at Oxford
>University and the author of the book 'Delete:
>The Virtue of Forgetting in the Digital Age.
>
>That things in our past become rosier over time
>is incredibly important,' he added. As we forget,
>our memories abstract and our brain goes through
>a cleansing process. Mr. Mayer-Schonberger said
>that keeping a perpetual visual diary of
>everything could slow down our brains' purging process.
>
>Constantly interacting with our mobile devices
>has other drawbacks too. There are more pictures
>in my iPhone of that 45-minute hike at Pacifica
>than most families would have taken on a two-week
>vacation before the advent of digital cameras.
>
>As a result, I had no time to daydream on that
>hike, and daydreams, scientists say, are imperative in solving problems.
>
>Jonah Lehrer, a neuroscientist and the author of
>the soon-to-be-released book, 'Imagine: How
>Creativity Works,' said in a phone interview that
>our brains often needed to become inattentive to
>figure out complex issues. He said his book
>discussed an area of the brain scientists call
>'the default network' that was active only when
>the rest of the brain was inactive - in other words, when we were
>daydreaming.
>
>Letting the mind wander activates the default
>network, he said, and allows our brains to solve
>problems that most likely can't be solved during a game of Angry Birds.
>
>Like everyone else, I really can't imagine life
>without that little computer in my pocket,' he
>added. However, there is an importance to being
>able to put it aside and let those daydreams
>naturally perform the cognitive functions your brain needs.
>
>Jonathan Schooler, a professor of psychology at
>the University of California, Santa Barbara who
>has focused his research on daydreaming, put it
>this way: 'Daydreaming and boredom seem to be a
>source for incubation and creative discovery in
>the brain and are part of the creative incubation process.
>
>I don't intend to give up my technology entirely,
>but I want to find a better balance. For me, it's
>that 30 minutes a day for daydreaming.
>
>Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go and tell my
>Twitter followers about my New Year's resolution.
>
>This is a more complete version of the story than
>the one that appeared in print.
>
>
>
>Brad Dunsé
>
>""Life is too important to be taken seriously."" --Oscar Wilde
>
>http://www.braddunsemusic.com
>
>http://www.facebook.com/braddunse
>
>http://www.twitter.com/braddunse
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Brad Dunsé

"If you're fishing buddy says 'Get me a hook will 
ya?' and you spill your tackle box reaching for 
your writing bag..." You might be a songwriter. --Capt'n Frank

http://www.braddunsemusic.com

http://www.facebook.com/braddunse

http://www.twitter.com/braddunse
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