<center> This is my first time responding to @ecotrain's Question of the week: </center>

<center><h5> How do you maintain your sanity? </h5></center>

<center> is this week's question and it fits perfectly with the situation we, Steemians, are in for days now and also with everything that has been going on in the world. </center>

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<p><div class="text-justify"> With Social media presence and media in general, we are constantly bombarded with news of all kinds. No matter what happens in the world, it's matter of hours before we all find out about it. I won't go deeper into the topic of the brain washing and was it made to program us and control us instead of being a source of valuable information. </div></p>

<p><div class="text-justify"> When it comes to Steem related situation, I've seen so many people getting so emotionally invested and also investing their time, effort and neglecting other things, doing what they can to fight this #SteemHostileTakeOver. I've also been following updates on Discord and Twitter non-stop these days. I'm that type of person that almost has no control, when I get into something, I'm all in. So it has been hard for me to step away from this but today I finally managed to take some time not checking Discord and Twitter every minute and work on another post that I really enjoyed and enjoyed a semi-nice day here in Serbia. Since tomorrow the weather should be nice and sunny so I'll be able to do some work outside. </div></p>

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<center><h5> No matter what is going on in my life, here are some things that always help me unwind, clear my mind, relax find some balance and maintain my sanity: </h5></center>

<h2> 1. Going for a walk and spend time by the water </h2>

<p><div class="text-justify"> Walking is one of my favorite physical activities and my favorite route leads to the river where I just like to sit by the water, relax and clear my thoughts. If it's not the weekend, there's usually not that many people which I like. I always feel so much better afterwards. Bike rides during spring and summer are also something I did last year and really looking forward to continue soon. </div></p>

![3.jpg](https://files.steempeak.com/file/steempeak/nikolina/uQlwMXwy-3.jpg)

<h2> 2. Watching the sunsets </h2>

<p><div class="text-justify"> I am so lucky and grateful for this amazing sunset view from my frontyard/garden. I absolutely love watching sunsets, I find it so peaceful and the beauty of it always amazes me. </div></p>

![20191107_163540.jpg](https://files.steempeak.com/file/steempeak/nikolina/yGT86ZVA-20191107_163540.jpg)

<h2> 3. Reading </h2>

<p><div class="text-justify"> Getting myself into a story telling of a book is one of my favorite "distractions". There's just something about reading that is therapeutic and even though I also like watching movies/TV series, as a non-screen activity, reading is still my favorite. </div></p>

![20200108_193726.jpg](https://files.steempeak.com/file/steempeak/nikolina/rwOc8YBU-20200108_193726.jpg)

<h2> 4. Our family garden </h2>

<p><div class="text-justify"> Even though gardening season haven't started yet and there's not a lot outdoors activities, I still like to chill out there as it allows me to spend time by myself and it is one of my favorite places. I am looking forward to spring - spring cleaning, garden preparation, planting seeds and all that good stuff. :) </div></p>

![IMG_7639.jpg](https://files.steempeak.com/file/steempeak/nikolina/hdcUXU60-IMG_7639.jpg)

<center><b> Writing this post reminded me of a tag #happyplace by @robertandrew a while back. I managed to find [my post](https://steempeak.com/nature/@nikolina/this-is-my-happyplace) about it and I think that it's a perfect addition to this one. Also if you want to respond to @ecotrain's question, join the [community](https://steempeak.com/c/hive-123046/created) and check out the [original post](https://steempeak.com/ecotrain/@ecotrain/ecotrain-qotw-join-us-with-all-the-craziness-in-the-world-how-do-you-maintain-your-sanity) for all the details. Thank you for reading and have a lovely day/night! :) </b></center>

![header 5.jpg](https://files.steempeak.com/file/steempeak/nikolina/gddlAh09-header205.jpg)

<center><sub> Photos are mine already shared in some of my older posts  </sub></center>

<center><sub> Banner created with Canva </sub></center>

![header 5.jpg](https://files.steempeak.com/file/steempeak/nikolina/ITM4IuEx-header205.jpg)

![signature.png](https://files.steempeak.com/file/steempeak/nikolina/1pP2APaV-signature.png)

<center><h5> Some of my previous posts: </h5></center>

<center> [Everything Is Cool In The Countryside
](https://steempeak.com/homesteading/@nikolina/everything-is-cool-in-the-countryside) </center>

<center> [Sublime Sunday - Embrace The Randomness
](https://steempeak.com/sublimesunday/@nikolina/3bbwy6-sublime-sunday-embrace-the-randomness) </center>

<center> [Photos Filters And Effects Contest #createthatlook - My Entry
](https://steempeak.com/createthatlook/@nikolina/photos-filters-and-effects-contest-createthatlook-my-entry) </center>

<center> [MY STEEM STORY - By @nikolina](https://steempeak.com/hive-114105/@nikolina/my-steem-story-by-nikolina) </center>

<center> [March, so far...](https://steempeak.com/random/@nikolina/march-so-far) </center>

<center> [Short #WednesdayWalk and my first time using SteemPeak](https://steempeak.com/wednesdaywalk/@nikolina/short-wednesdaywalk-and-my-first-time-using-steempeak) </center>