A Bowl Of Mie

Free Zine Alert!

sucked into online discourse? check out a book on the topic from the library. read it out of spite. every time you wanna argue or doom scroll think "ooh I'll show all those uninformed wankers who's boss by being so well read on this subject" and pick up that book.

have a task you know you won't do with other distractions around? do it at the library. leave your distractions at home. it's just you and the task now. it's like being at school.

feeling spendy? go to the library and check out as many books as humanly possible. take them home and admire your indulgent excess. you don't even have to read them. just do it to fulfill your desire to Aquire.

feeling angry at the world? pick a topic. pick a wanker politician. go to the library and write a letter to them on the computer. print it out and send it to them.

need some whimsy in your life? print out your favourite memes at the library and decorate your space with them. stick them on your stuff. fill your life with small pieces of joy.

𓋼 some pages of my journal 𓇽 .˳

So a new tiny e-paper e-reader has taken the Analog world by storm. It's tiny and barebones, can only read text files and only holds like ten books at a time, so people are heralding it as the ultimate ultraportable distraction-free e-reader. And people are buying MagSafe phone mounts to stick it to the cover of their premium EDC pocket notebooks/planners. Which actually appealed to me bc my daily bag(s. I switch them out depending on the situation I'm entering) a chaotic mess I'm constantly having to dig around into, so having it consolidated into One Thing was giving me fomo.

But I don't haz monies (for things like this, anyway). Also I try not to buy lithium battery things new for human rights reasons

What I do have is a really strong fridge* magnet, an oversized metal washer, a 7-year-old 6-inch Pocketbook Touch HD 3 I got off of ebay 3 years ago, a repurposed 7-dollar Budget-sized/"A6" (which is a lie, it's much larger than A6 but they're all marketed as A6 for some reason) filofax knockoff, and...duct tape.

[Image Description: a 6inch ereader with its case covered in a sticker collage of vintage-looking art, most prominently a quote by Oscar Wilde that has a brightly colored background with a separate human eye over it, the quote saying "The books that the world calls immortal are books that show the world its own shame". The e-reader is on top of a lilac-colored filofax-like planner shell. Further details: a pair of sapphire and ruby gemstones next to it, a death's head moth above it, a pair of blue mushrooms above that, a mostly-coveres sticker that shows the words "The Raven" and a severe-looking dark-haired winged man, and a pair of redacted stickers sandwhiching another sticker hat shows a sketch of a human skull.]

Redacted stickers are bc they're initials. Also ignore my previous bujo indecision, I am in fact gonna switch from the A5 to the A6

[The backs of the e-reader case and the filofax, both showing diagonal strips of black duct tape, each with a flat discs embedded in the strips. The back of the e-reader is black so the tape doesn't stand out much, but it does on the filofax.]

Originally wasted a lot of hot glue (after futily sanding the metal back of the magnet first) in multiple attempts of trying to get the magnet to stick inside the hole I carved into the pleather of the filofax, before giving that up and just going with duct tape.

[Image Description: a hand holding the e-reader in the air, the filofax still attached and staying attached.]

[Now the reverse, the hand holding the filofax and the heavier e-reader staying attached beneath it. Noteably, they're not completely flush with each other as the magnet sticks out the back of the filofax a bit. End I.D]

Couldn't carve a hole in the filofax any deeper or I would have had the magnet come out the other side of the cover, so I'll just have to cope

Anyway. Aesthetically pleasing? Not when unattached, no. Did I spend any money on it? Nope. At least not until I have to replenish my hot glue sticks later. Will the duct tape hold? Ideally. I hope. I've used this brand for years, including during the first project, and it's held up well every time. I put the strips in the same direction so they would glide across the same "grain" without too much friction

2025 book tracking project is COMPLETE! 📚✨

I've seen the Nook Glowlight 4 but they don't sell here, and the only option seems to be to get a second hand one shipped here - which! I love reusing electronics! Yes please. Second hand = second life. Keep them out of landfill. But the import fees are more than the device at this point in time, which even though they look ideal make me wary of purchasing one.

Does anyone know of anything in the same kind of form factor (side buttons on both sides, less than 7 inches, easy to hold) with a light option, preferable no or little bezel dip to screen?

First of all, the kindle voyage. It has haptic feedback page turn buttons on the side and it’s really lightweight (I usually hold it with one hand). Barely adds to my bag weight. It’s an older model from 2014 but I think it holds up just fine! It has a backlight and a really crisp screen, along with no bezel! I’ve been using mine for six years and it’s still going strong! You also can replace the battery and it’s not too hard to do on your own and the battery itself isnt too expensive.

My second recommendation is the XTeink X3! This one is coming from less personal experience, but I’ve seen tons of people really love and enjoy this one. It’s definitely the most simple, but it is also the most small. It doesn’t have a touchscreen or a backlight which could be a pro or a con and it does have page turn buttons!

The third is the Boox Palma. It’s essentially a smart phone with an eink screen. I personally like that kindles and kobos are more limited in their abilities, but if youre interested in a device that can do more, this one is really popular!

And an honorable mention for the Kobo mini which is a really cute device. It doesn’t suit your needs fully as it does have intense bezel dip and no buttons along with a lack of a back light. But it’s so cute I had to mention it. It’s a great option if youre looking for a more traditional ereader that has limited functionality and of course the size is just so nice. It feels great in the hand.

couldn't sleep and was sad. had a bit of a rough night but I won't get into that. the point is I wanted to paint. so I waited, staring out the window, for the sun to rise so I could go out and do some plein air

i packed a new kit recently that I'm more happy with for plein air and I really like the little clear bag I put it in because then I can't forget what's in it. I thrifted it for 9 cents if you'll believe it! i also use a little clear pouch for my colored pencils that my partner gave me for DND notes :) big fan of these little window bags!

the palette is himi gouache in a little plastic box that held cords or crayons or something at some point. i just stuck some half pans in it. i like how light weight it is. pocketable. and the paint is a lot more manageable now that I carry a spray bottle. i had a smaller one at one point that had hand sanitizer in it and I want to find it to add to the kit. after painting a bit while the sun rose, I started walking.

it started raining when I was a quarter of the way to the park but I just decided to commit and kept walking. took lots of pictures of pretty things I saw on the way and got very very rained on. my Totoro hoodie made me feel like it wasnt too bad.

got to the park and it was pouring so I ran to cover. lots of pretty views from there. my paint was more activated at this point and felt even better to work with. i used mainly my large flat water brush which I am a big fan of.