Nangle Natters: … step away from the pixels

I don’t know about you, but just when I’m about to go to sleep is when my mind spins off at 100mph with a list of umpteen things I’ve got to do. It happens when I’m in yoga class too. A peaceful mind has been eluding me. And I’m pretty sure I’m not the only one.
Looking around I seem to be in the majority that it’s almost a physical wrench to put down my smartphone and look at the real world around me. If I’m on a bus journey I’ll check Facebook, maybe play a bit of Yahtzee, even – perversely – check out the weather online. Um… I could always look out of the window. Online is safe and away from the unpredicatability of ‘out in the world’. But equally, when I do literally force myself to put down the device and step away from the pixels, it’s like taking a massive breath of fresh air, and a little bit exciting that anything could happen. It’s up to me.
So I’ve collected a bus timetable for trips up to the Dyke. I’ll take my phone on my walk, but I’ll put it in my backpack, well out of reach. And let my gaze wander further than 12 inches in front of my nose.