Key Takeaways
The subject
This article is about a small morning reset: a window opened for fresh air, coffee set to brew, and a shower chosen as the next clear move.
The human note
One short line—“the excess had not been taken”—remained unexplained, but it shaped the mood of the moment.
The gentle plan
A simple way to steady the day appeared: name energy from zero to ten, pick the first task, and keep it small.
Story & Details
A simple morning reset
On Monday, December 15, 2025, the scene was plain and familiar. A window was lifted. Fresh air came in. Coffee was started. The words were calm, almost like a nod to the day: the coffee would go on, and that would be that.
A line that stayed unclear
There was also a brief, puzzling detail: the excess had not been taken. No reason was given. No story followed it. The sentence simply sat there, real and unresolved, before the next choice was named.
The shower, then the next small thing
The next move was direct: a shower. Not as a grand ritual, but as a clean break between “before” and “after.” Then came a quiet idea for what follows a shower on a busy morning: check energy on a zero-to-ten scale, choose one first task, and let that one thing lead the rest.
A tiny Dutch mini-lesson
Dutch is spoken in the Netherlands (Europe). One useful everyday sentence is: Ik ga douchen. It carries a simple, natural tone for daily life. The words line up like this: Ik means “I,” ga means “go,” and douchen means “to shower.”
Conclusions
A raised window and a brewing cup can feel like a small vote for clarity. A shower can make that clarity physical. Even with one sentence left unexplained, the morning held together: fresh air, coffee, and a next step that stayed gentle.
Selected References
[1] TED-Ed — “How does caffeine keep us awake?” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=foLf5Bi9qXs
[2] World Health Organization — Ventilation and air conditioning (Q&A). https://www.who.int/news-room/questions-and-answers/item/coronavirus-disease-covid-19-ventilation-and-air-conditioning
[3] Harvard Health Publishing — Rethinking your morning coffee. https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/rethinking-your-morning-coffee
[4] Sleep Foundation — Sleep inertia. https://www.sleepfoundation.org/how-sleep-works/sleep-inertia
Appendix
Dutch
A West Germanic language used in daily life in the Netherlands (Europe), with simple, practical phrases that can be learned fast.
Energy scale
A quick self-rating from zero to ten that turns a vague feeling into a clear, small piece of information.
Excess
A word that signals “something extra,” left undefined here, and therefore kept as an open detail rather than a fixed meaning.
Sleep inertia
The heavy, foggy feeling some people have just after waking, before the mind fully clears.
Ventilation
Fresh outdoor air moving through an indoor space, often helped by opening a window or door.
My Diary - Leonardo Cardillo 