Squats to Scroll: Screen Time

you didn't mean to lose the evening.

you picked up your phone for one thing. forty minutes later you're still there, and you couldn't say what you saw. that isn't weak will. it's the design, and you're outnumbered.

so we gave the problem to a cat.

how it works

nugget is an orange tabby in a white duck hat. you tell him which apps eat your time. tiktok, instagram, whatever yours are. he goes and lies on them.

open one and he's sprawled across it. unbothered. immovable. the only way past him is a couple of squats, counted by your camera, and then he rolls off and gives you fifteen minutes.

that's the whole loop. about twenty seconds.

he is not a disciplinarian

a day where you never reached for those apps at all is his favorite kind of day. the streak keeps, and he says nothing about it. no nagging, no evening guilt trip, no angry red numbers.

and if you're having a hard week, he sprawls a little wider and gives you more room, not less. the goal ramps to meet you where you actually are. you're allowed to be a person.

camera-shy? that's fine

squats are counted on your device by the camera, and nothing ever leaves your phone. no video, no images, no upload. if you'd rather not turn the camera on at all, tap to count instead. the whole app works without it.

what's in it

• guard as many apps as you like. there is no app limit
• on-device squat counting, or tap to count
• streaks, quiet days, and a home-screen widget with your screen time left
• outfits he earns and wears on your home screen, treasures he drags home for you, and cover days for when life happens

what it costs

nothing. not free-until-the-end-of-onboarding and then a price. free: the whole app, as many guarded apps as you want, no card, nothing to cancel, no trial quietly counting down.

if a paid tier ever does arrive, everyone already here keeps what they already have. he is not going to take something back that he already gave you.

for anyone who has ever looked up and realized the evening …