“Driven to distraction, but aren’t we all?” was the title of Friday’s Postcard, in which I blamed myself, largely, for the mugging: The gang pounced as I was wrapped up in conversation on my cell, oblivious to activity (and peril) around me. One who chimed in with perspective: Mika Brzezinski. The co-anchor of MSNBC’s Morning Joe certainly can relate. She wrote a book, All Things at Once, about the hazards of being too busy and the need to slow down — for the sake of her health and her children’s health, as she illustrates via very moving personal stories.

These days, Mika B. is struggling to reform, as am I. You too? If so, it’s worth reading this email that she sent me, in response to Friday’s Postcard:

It’s so true. YES. That is me. Always on cell, bbery working on three things at once…always at least three things. And YES, kids have less to do, crime and wayward behavior on upswing bc of economy–things will only get worse..
U r so right!

Your blog touched a nerve. At some point every day, we really have to put everything away and just…breathe. And focus. 10 at night? Put the bbery down. Put the phone down.

I am working to wean myself off the bbery by taking two-hour intervals of having it off. When I turn it back on, it explodes with messages! We are blessed to be engaged in great projects and working, but now, in this age of information communication overload, we must control it, for the sake of our own sense of balance, and, in your case, safety!! Take care!!