Digital Dispatch 11.8: A case for living seasonally

As DST blues hit, it's the perfect opportunity to restructure our work habits and relationship to social media

Nov 09, 2023

Key reads to keep up on industry news

Feeling depressed as we set our clocks back? It’s not just you. Sleep scientists warn that the practice of DST has public health consequences ranging from increased automobile collisions to worsening mental health.
Is the golden age of social media over? According to this article from Wired, Jason Parham argues that millennials have no remaining home on the internet.
There is no weirder feeling than realizing that your all-encompassing digital world isn’t actually at the forefront of the cultural zeitgeist. While I’m engrossed in TikToks demonstrating how to tie vintage ribbons into the perfect hair accessory or Christmas tree decor, apparently teen boys have been equally fixated on the concept of “looksmaxxing.” The NYT deep dive on the subject has me simultaneously fascinated and fearful.
Will AI degrade online communities? This piece from Tech Policy Press offers a hypothesis.

Love This Language

Excellently composed posts, presented for your viewing pleasure.

Having been pitched a lot of bad UGC in my life, I’m ecstatic when I see it done well. The visuals in this reel from @courtneecrews for Vans hit the spot… literally every clip is perfection. Why? Let’s break it down.

Opens with eye-catching, lighthearted movement
Keeps the product as the focal point while making sure it’s organically integrated with it’s surroundings
Innovates within the typical “get ready with me” form by adding in creative movement (moonwalk, anyone?) and shifting the zoom for each clip
She tells a story— taking us along from getting ready at home, to an urban walk and sitting at the coffee shop— it all feels far more engaging and relatable than most “coffee shop” OOTD content I’ve seen.
The LIGHTING. Need I say more?
The framing and video work has a nostalgic, 2000s home video with friends quality. Paired with her genuine smile and candid moments, it becomes immersive
And a bonus: It’s all paired with an unexpected, delightful audio

courtneecrews

A post shared by @courtneecrews

From Claire’s Desk

How one girl is tackling seasonal depression and shortening days

I recently used the phrase “my wintering practice” in earnest on a phone call and it was greeted with shocked, but not unkind, laughter. Each party on that call was phased afterwards— I by the fact that they didn’t think about wintering as an intentional act one could “practice” and them, I’m sure, by the odd lingo I used to describe what is, in effect, spending a lot of time under a blanket on the couch.

The difference between the two comes down to intention far more than it does to action. We probably both wear sweaters, eat soup, and primarily workout indoors during these months.

Whether we embrace them or not, every person navigates both literal and emotional winters. A few years of intense work around seasons and cycles in therapy and rereading my beloved Wintering by Katherine May have lead me to believe we all benefit from times of hunkering down against the cold.

My first year of intentionally wintering, I bought some elasticated pants so as to minimize the time the sharp morning chill had to slice into my skin while getting dressed. My second winter, I subsisted largely off of homemade sourdough bread and scented candles. In my third, I attempted to flip my workday and run errands or go for walks during the midday warmth and then tuck back into work once it was dark outside. It turns out that mainly working from the couch and underneath a stack of blankets is far better for putting yourself to sleep than it is for growing a business.

So here I am, stepping into my fourth year of building a wintering practice. In thinking about how I can tactically shift my business to better serve myself and my customers, I’ve found that my relationship to work, social media and my own body are all transformed by winter. Here’s some of the preparations I’ve been making; I hope by sharing these, it prompts you to consider how to best support yourself through winter as well.

I wake up with sound and light. A combination of gentle birdsong and a sunrise lamp trick my brain into all but leaping out of bed at 6:45 am. In the spirit of deinfluencing, I’m not going to share the exact models I use, but having a good alarm clock and sunrise lamp have made such a huge difference in my life.
I decide if it’s going to be a green light, yellow light, or red light day early. Originally introduced to this by my coach, Jenni, green light days have great energy, yellow light days require scaling back, and red light days are for full-fledged breaks. After waking up, using the bathroom, and brushing my teeth, I face a do-or-die moment. If I keep moving, I’ll have a chance to knock out some extra to-dos or tidy around the apartment before beginning client work. If I crawl into bed, I’ll likely stay there until minutes before I’m needed online. Green light Claire walks out of that bathroom and right into the closet to put on an outfit. Yellow light Claire stays in pajamas and eats breakfast on the couch, while red light Claire gets back into bed for an extra 20 minutes of snuggles. In that one moment, I’m setting an intention for what direction the rest of the day will go.
I’m creating household-wide moments of re-energizing at key times. C and myself both struggle to keep our energy up in the winter. I’ve started playing a “pump up song” each morning while we make our caffeinated beverage of our choosing. His favorite? Chelsea Dagger with a hazelnut cold brew. Mine? 9 to 5 and an iced lavender matcha.
Perfect a hobby. One year I got really into making jewelry, another year was scrapbooking and collaging. The importance is not in the quality of the result, but the process of making. I find it’s key to have a way to relax away from screens to avoid boredom and fatigue. Picking a hobby early ensures you have something ready when a low-energy “I have nothing to do” mood strikes.
Comfort food is key. Our current favorite is sauerkraut with sausages and my mom’s homemade spaetzle recipe. But we also keep plenty of comfort foods that require little prep work around— protein pancake mix, a loaf of sourdough in the freezer, jars of soup, and plenty of pasta. When energy is low, the accessibility of a hearty meal is key. As much as simmering a pot of chicken noodle soup on the stove makes me feel like a cottagecore queen, sometimes chicken nuggets and mashed potatoes are slightly more practical fare.
I keep some things exclusive to wintertime. Urged to this practice by my therapist, I let myself do some fun stuff in the winter that’s off-limits in the summer to make the season more enjoyable. Some examples are buying new flavors of tea, buying books instead of checking them out from the library, and stocking up on scented candles. I also let myself watch tik tok in bed… the ultimate guilty pleasure.
Don’t let the dark sneak up on you. The transition from afternoon to darkness is one of the hardest. I try to have all my lamps on and candles lit by 3:30 or 4 pm so that we cozily fade into the evening without blinking an eye.
I let myself go to sleep early. Once I’m starting to feel cold, tired or sad, I lumber off to do my bedtime routine. Falling asleep on the couch or feeling restless just to mark time? Nah, I’d rather shamelessly be in bed by 8:30.