I switched to a dumb phone and I'm not going back

I've been chronically offline for the last month or so… even took the leap and switched to a dumb phone. It's a cool, sleek, tiny Nokia 225 4G with absolutely zero bells and whistles. I'm always working on trying to understand myself and the world around me more in depth — though there are some days I wish I was slightly less aware.

As someone that has a tendency towards nurturing work, I've always felt a bit disconnected from projects that weren't directly related to causes I deeply cared about. I feel that much of my career I prioritized the needs of others over my own interests. So it's been nice to disconnect and dive into work that really excites me while distancing myself a bit from social media chaos.

I feel that now more than ever this throwback to intentional communication is so important and I'm seeing it reflect in my work over the last week.

I've been picking up a ton of environmental volunteer work and it has been filling my cup nicely. Orland Grassland is absolutely beautiful and I highly encourage you to check it out if you're local. I've been diving into plant identification and invasive species removal, dipping my toes into the conservation world a bit more than with just interpretive design. Though I love design work, it has been lovely for my ADHD-riddled brain to do something physical that helps. I can now identify around 20 species of native plants and have enrolled in the Morton Arboretum's N-ACT program.