second screen

so recently i have been making music again with my grooveboxes/synths/sequencers, however you want to call them. if you're not familiair, they are very basic ableton or fl studio in a small hardware box with buttons. and if that's also not clear... they are like a keyboard on which you can record, but they don't necessarily have piano keys...

anyway, they are fun, but also sometimes i just don't touch them for a time. as they are instruments, they demand attention to use them. and after work... the thing you often lack is attention. your energy is drained, so you just tap into some screen and call it a day.

but as i have put one of my grooveboxes next to me on the couch in hand's reach. when i'm now relaxing and watching some predictable discovery tv show like opal miners or crab fishers, my body will just grab the machine and start using it.

it's this trick where the tv show is grabbing a part of my attention, but not all of it. and the instrument has all these buttons that humans can't resist. so i start pushing the buttons and before i know it, i have made some music.

i used to do this years and years ago when i learned guitar. just turn on the tv and watch whatever, and then let your hands do the work. i know deliberate practice is important. and this probably only works after you put some time into your craft. but... for me when i just need to unwind with some low stakes tv.. instead of scrolling, i just try and put an instrument next to me... or something else that's a little creative.

so yeah... maybe it's not second screen, but second activity.