There are lots of different ways to unwind, but in my opinion you can break them up into two basic categories: there are mindful ways, which bring your attention into the present moment, and there are mindless ways, which take you anywhere but the present moment.
And it’s okay to employ a mix of both! Here are some of my favorites:
- Music – An obviously fantastic option. Playing or practicing an instrument can be extremely relaxing, but just putting on your favorite playlist can work wonders, too.
- Games – Can stimulate the brain in interesting ways! Selene and I have had spent many nights playing word games… the NYT crossword can present an interesting challenge. Wordle is super fun, too. But recently, we’ve been pretty hooked on one called Connections (although sometimes I do end up yelling at the screen of my phone).
- Nature – Definitely a healthy option! Go touch some grass somewhere. Even a simple walk around the block can work wonders. Find a squirrel near you and throw them some snacks.
- Reading – This one is even better if it’s raining outside and you can crack a window enough to hear it. Curling up with a book is basically an age old tradition.
- Treat Yourself – What silly little thing is giving you the munchies? Is it ice cream? Chocolate? Pizza? Go get it! It’s okay to indulge.
- Vegetation – I know it can be really obnoxious to some people, but having the TV on is one of the only ways that I can actually fall asleep at night. I’ve got a list of shows that I can watch and rewatch from now until infinity. They include Seinfeld, Parks and Rec, and The Office… but the greatest among them is Star Trek.
How do you relax? What’s your favorite way to unwind? And more importantly… how do you find the time to do it?
Good morning and happy Monday, friends.
It was my birthday this weekend, so first of all, thank you to everyone who sent me some wishes! Selene and I had a fairly quiet afternoon, then went out for a nice dinner.
It was delicious! And accordantly, it was followed by the recommended amount of cheesecake.
I have had a pretty swamped week to be honest! I’ve been putting together some promo material for a new class series that I’m going to offer this summer. It’s called “The Witch’s Toolkit: Sound, Substance, and Sight” and it’s going to go over topics like music, alchemy, and divination. You may have already seen an email about it a few days ago. Each class is $25 (or $60 for the bundle), but this week only I’m doing an introductory sale of 20% off… so you can go check out the classes page for more details if you’re interested!
Disclaimer: I’m probably going to be talking about this a lot over the next few weeks.
Earlier in the week, I posted David Shi’s raw interview footage on Patreon. This will make it’s way to becoming the next episode of M3… but on top of that, I did finish the episode with Josh Yates, so you can go watch that right now on YouTube.
To follow up my video on Prayer Beads, I also wrote an article about it! Both are fun and I hope you enjoy each of them equally.
This is incredibly random, but we recently noticed that one of our neighbors put this up on a tree. It’s delightful.
I got some new books in the mail from Crossed Crow. You can watch me open the box because unboxing is always fun to watch. I mean, an unopened box is basically just a container of mystery — it must be solved! But to spoil the mystery, it was Witchcraft Unchained by Craig Spencer, The Tameless Path by Kamden Cornell, and Hallowed Ground by Mark Norman. I’ll check back in once I’ve had some time to read… and then I’ll most likely have the authors on an episode of M3 in the future! Oh, but… even though the mystery is spoiled, you can still have fun watching the unboxing.
Thanks to birthday gifts from my wonderful wife, I’ve made some small upgrades to the M3 studio. First, a higher quality webcam — now you will be able to see my smiling face at higher resolution during interviews. And second, a laptop stand — now you’ll get a better viewing angle instead of sometimes looking up my nose.
I think that’s all for now, but I’ve definitely got a lot of excited projects in the works! Stay tuned for more soon!
Aerik Arkadian 
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