I keep a similar thing in Org mode (yes today _I'm_ going to be the one mentioning Org Mode). Every day I create an entry into my DayNotes org file with the date in reverse order e.g. 2019-09-01 and with where I am and the weather etc. I usually have three sections, a catch up of yesterday, what I'm probably going to do today, and my actual day notes. This usually includes my current theme, something Im focusing on for a certain period, this week it is creativity.
I also keep a paper journal, which has longer term themes and thoughts and planning. This usually ends up being a brain dump of all of the crap that goes around and around, just like in the original article. I take things from here and try to expand on them in the day notes. For the paper journal I use a Cross fountain pen, like the one that Obama had, or often cheap Fountain Pentel pens which Ive used for decades now. The fountain pen I fill with archival quality ink, the stuff that registrars use.
Thank you for being The One to bring up Org Mode. I've also been returning to Org Mode after a year or so of bullet journaling in a Moleskine (yes, with a fountain pen).
My procedure of late is:
- keyboard shortcut + a snippet of Emacs Lisp to create today's journal entry (e.g. 2019-09-01.org) in a "journal" subdirectory;
- YASnippet to fill out a daily journal template with two-column LaTeX export styling the way I want;
- Write down any dreams I remember in the morning;
- Write down a simple to-do list in an Org table, moving items up and down; rather than TODO states, I put a space between items already done and those remaining; if I don't get everything done, I can strikethrough the item to indicate that;
- Find and copy or type in a quote or a poem for the day (usually at the end of the day);
- Occasionally, paste in a small snippet of code that I wrote or saw that I liked;
- Any interesting things that happened or felt noteworthy that day.
Finally, and this is perhaps one of the more important steps:
- export as LaTeX to PDF, then print, three-hole punch, and stick it in a binder on my desk.
The format and what I put in changes daily and it's kind of neat to see that unfold in the printouts. I find that having the printed journal makes the older entries (each a single page so far) a pleasure to look over and gives me a sense of what my time has been like recently. If it was just on the computer I probably wouldn't ever look at it again, and I wanted something that gave me easy access to the feelings of the recent days that otherwise seem to disappear completely.
I also keep a paper journal, which has longer term themes and thoughts and planning. This usually ends up being a brain dump of all of the crap that goes around and around, just like in the original article. I take things from here and try to expand on them in the day notes. For the paper journal I use a Cross fountain pen, like the one that Obama had, or often cheap Fountain Pentel pens which Ive used for decades now. The fountain pen I fill with archival quality ink, the stuff that registrars use.