15 February 2016

The First Day

I used to keep a journal, almost daily. For more than a decade I had a digital journal, locked behind anonymity and passwords. Then, maybe four years ago, I stopped. As with everything, it was a trickle at first, and then I found myself updating life by the quarter: January through March, followed by April through June, etc. Or I'd backdate, and capture the general occurrences, but lose the day to day interactions.

Enter Day One, a Mac and iOS journaling app. My friend Brandon introduced to me late last year and since November I've basically been able to maintain a daily log of events. It's all a part of my efforts to re-enter the writing world. Step one: It doesn't matter what I'm writing as along I'm sitting down at the computer putting some words out. That was my thinking anyway.

Ironically, the only reason I've been able to keep up with Day One is that it's available on my iPhone. Plus, it's pretty. And there's a part of met that likes to not miss a day as the entries pile up. Basically I just log what I did that day, who I saw, anyone I talked to, real boring mundane stuff. But now that I'm back in the habit, I'm hoping to start real journaling again, about feelings and thoughts, and that kind of thing.

Wish me luck. If you're wishing you could keep a journal but could never make it happen, pay the money for Day One. It's worth it and it'll make you feel accomplished at the end of each day. Update: A new version of Day One came out, the oddly named Day One 2. This is a full rebuild, and is half price at $4.99 for iOS and $19.99 for Mac. I've found that the program works best with both pieces, however pricey.

Ideally I'd have separate journals for daily stuff, private life stuff, a creative journal, and a work journal, but that's just too many. I'm gonna try to make more full fledged entries and try to encompass everything in one. Keeping up with your life is a job in and of itself isn't it?

Along with starting to keep a journal again, I've started reading Heidi Julavits' The Folded Clock: A Diary, also a recommend from a friend. I paid a whopping $14.99 for the Kindle version, which was greater than the price of the paperback. So far it's been great and I highly recommend.