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Comment by agumonkey | Hacker News Reader

Just this afternoon I was reflecting on how, in many case, N hours of internet feels like nothing in your mind. It's a long stream of nice actions that rarely lead to a worthy memory. On paper it's great, you have free, high grade information.. but something is missing.

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Perhaps leave some time for contemplation. It's getting really hard to just be alone with your thoughts; a whole industry is devoted to replacing it with more scrolling. It's still worth it though.

I love going on long motorcycle rides, because I get to let thoughts resurface, and to chew on them for as long as needed. I can't chase them online unless they persist for hours. I have to just think about stuff unassisted.

I often return from longer motorcycle trips with a sense of clarity that's hard to describe.

The same applies to long walks and hiking, if I can resist using my phone.

Your motorcycle riding reminded me of Attention Restoration Theory, where spending time in nature recharges oneself in pert due to the loosely held attention (as opposed to directed attention, like when we read or spend time online).

Nature is also extremely vibrant and dense, but no abstracted or symbolic. Trying to follow squirrels in forest or pick a path in dense woods will warm up your brain quite a bit.

Observing nature is a skill that needs practice. It's one of the most rewarding things you can learn.

It's basically an extended shower thinking session.

I started adding tea breaks to my work day and it helps too, if I can force myself to sit idle on the balcony.

funny cause i mentionned contemplation here https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=33060801

i also like hiking or biking because it massages my brain and revive subtle thoughts for free

Good comment - time to put the phone away for the day.

Real engagement, not passive. Even discussions like these aren't always memorable. It's like driving the same route to and from the office for years, at some point you start arriving home or at the office with little recollection of what happened in between. You weren't asleep, but you made few new memories if nothing out of the ordinary happened (days I remember: Seeing a red truck on its side off the road, the days deer or antelope cross the path, the time a cow decided to turn up on the road, etc.). So what are you doing on the internet? Just reading? Is it creating new memories, new connections? Sometimes, but how frequently? What if you try to actively engage with the material, make summaries, try out the ideas in a small project, anything.

right, thus I wonder about two things:

- disconnected events even if passive, like contemplating, or having someone around, doesn't cause the same kind of void

- being genuinely active on internet is hard, your brain is constantly battling the possibility of a sweet distraction in your browser tab

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