Sewitch Etcetera Corporation

You’d think boredom was fatal, the way many people, assuredly teenagers, will go to great lengths to avoid it. From my observations of humans, including myself, it appears that irritating stimulation is preferable to no stimulation.

What do we do these days when, say, we’re waiting at a coffee shop for our friend to show up? We order a chai latte with almond milk. While that’s being made, we look around a bit, settle in our seat, maybe tidy up the table top’s condiments. Okay, that’s done. Now what?

The incredible urge at that point is to pull out our self-stimulation device and open an app.

[Guest article from Serra Sewitch-Posey. There is more to life that meets your eye.]

On Wednesday after work I stopped by the post office to mail some packages. I was luckily able to visit my favorite post office, which is near my work, tucked away on a side street behind MLK and Broadway. It’s small and cute and the workers there are friendly and relaxed. The one closer to my house has a neglected feel to it, and often has a window or two boarded up due to vandalism; there is a general air of impatience and hostility. This cute one had a long line of people but I didn’t mind at all, and I was fully ready to ride it out for as long as necessary.

[This guest article is by Jana De Anda]

I am the proud mother of a gregarious, talkative, energetic and articulate five-year old daughter named Adaline whose light shines in every room she enters. The honor of that role is not lost on me and my gratitude for her runs deep.

I also co-founded and run a strategy execution consulting firm headquartered in San Diego, with a second office in Portland, which employs close to 30 people as of this year. We serve major brands through transformation efforts that require data-driven approaches, process optimization, innovation, strategic program design and change management.

I tell you all this as backdrop to this story. As an entrepreneur, a leader and a strategic consultant, I’m often mentally tapped at the end of the day, and I have trouble sleeping through the night most of the time.

On one particular night, I had awakened around 1:00 a.m. and was having a particularly hard time getting back to sleep. Around 4:00 a.m., I had just fallen back to sleep when my daughter woke up, asking to come sleep with my husband and I, as young kids often do.