nine days left

We're in the middle of one of the three Mercury Retrograde periods which happen every year.  That's when, from Earth's perspective, Mercury appears to be moving backward in the sky -- an illusion of course caused by M's smaller and faster circle around the sun than ours.  Astrologers decided millennia ago that Mercury-ruled activities were likely to go awry at this time, and that it's also a good time for "looking backward."

So look backward.  Go somewhere there's NO extraneous noise, leave your ipod and phone and internet behind.  Turn off that television which is ALWAYS on in the other room, and the radio, too.  Listen to nothing but your own thoughts (and your own body) for an hour.  And no "self talk" -- just shut up and listen.  No distracting snacks or beverages.  No other person.  No distractions, period.

This activity is close to meditation, but no cigar.  You're not trying to still the mind or solve a problem or pep-talk yourself.  BE "bored" for a little while.

It's pathological to need constant outside stimulation.  How did our world come to this?