Some results from the last couple days of experiments (Part 1, Part 2):

(Character art by Rob Matthews.)

It took a bit of trouble but I was able to get the screen to refresh every several seconds. I plan to have the Pomodoro timer software refresh the screen every, say, 30-60 seconds. Fewer refreshes are better for a tool that’s supposed to help one focus on one’s tasks instead of hyperfixate on a real-time countdown.