How much time do you spend online or sitting at your computer?

Do you sit in a room with windows? What do you see outside your window? Are the shades drawn to prevent glare?

What do you do when you start to nod off during your work? Do you sip room-temperature Diet Pepsi? Throw down a handful of sugar for a quick pick-me-up? Is it getting harder to ignore that nagging voice reminding you your caffeine quotient’s already been used up for the day?

I met a blogging friend in person this last weekend. She admitted to knowing the difference between when her computer served her versus when she’d allowed herself to be sucked in to escape something else or to waste time. Do you listen and recognize the difference?

I love blogging. I’ve made it a part of my every-day’s work, by choice. My In-Real-Life friend who also blogs admits to having a crush on the Internet. I smile at the analogy because yes, as others pen, the Internet is the thinking person’s television. But just like television, thanks to my crush on the Internet*, my priorities easily become askew if I let them.

How do I avoid this? I remember I want to live a daily life of simple beauty. If even hours go by without nurturing my senses, life is off balance, even when facing pressing deadlines. And of course, leading a tea lifestyle reminds me how to live what I love. If you spend much of your day online, you probably need a few tips and tricks for a Beautiful Blogging Life.

1. Blog by a window. Even if you can’t gaze on verdure, watch the sky. If you cannot blog by a window, chose nature-based wall calendars, prints, or a screen-saver. Webshots is a great option.
2. Make yourself step outside, even if only for five minutes every couple of hours.
3. Open that window if you can, and breath in the fresh air.
4. Know what truly nurtures you. Men, I’m even talking to you. What truly reminds you “this world is enchanted“? Mozart? Fresh-baked muffins? Dead-heading the chrysanthemum? Start your day, however you can, remembering this truth BEFORE you go on-line.
5. Drink your caffeine and eat your sugar with purpose. Don’t use them to charge your burnt-out batteries. It doesn’t work! I, of course, recommend drinking tea for daily caffeine intake and saving sugar for a LITTLE touch of something with my afternoon cup.

My blogging mentor continues to remind me this on-line world doesn’t have to be a race. Though I’m not completely convinced**, I do know he’s reminding me that my love of this new medium isn’t worth letting go of the beauty of life. It’s the fear of being left behind that allows me to be driven at the cost of simple beauties. But for what purpose? Yes, I am giving you the on-line reminder to stop and smell the roses.

Did you like this post? Have you yet subscribed to my RSS feed? Please do so! It’s so simple, just press that big, beautiful, lavender button in the top right-hand corner of my site. I recently experienced a technical set-back which greatly affected my feed number. It’s one of the best ways you can support this site, as “important people” care a great deal about that number. Thank you! Now, go outside and breathe deeply.

*After all, how else could I obsessively check the weather, fan my Lost obsession even in the summer, find a kindred spirit across the pond, and keep up with a favorite author in ten minutes?

**I’m a Californian and glad my ancestors showed up when they did in the nineteenth century for a piece of the pie. Isn’t the Internet our latest frontier?