diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/renderer/src/components/screens/focus-screen.tsx b/apps/desktop/src/renderer/src/components/screens/focus-screen.tsx
index 6798486..0d35f05 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/renderer/src/components/screens/focus-screen.tsx
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/renderer/src/components/screens/focus-screen.tsx
@@ -7,9 +7,10 @@ import { EmptyState } from '../shell/states.js'
 import { Badge, Button, Card, IconButton, Tag } from '../ui/index.js'
 
 /**
- * Morning service — the Now/Next/Later focus cards + the burn-up cone.
- * `focus` (scheduler) and `forecast` (Monte Carlo) override the demo fixtures
- * when gitea is configured; both fall back to the handoff demo otherwise.
+ * Morning service — the Now/Next/Later focus cards + the burn-up cone, from the
+ * scheduler (`focus`) and Monte Carlo forecast (`forecast`). Both come from the
+ * reconciled backlog; with no open work the scheduler has nothing to pour, so we
+ * show the empty state.
  */
 export function FocusScreen({
   onOpenIssue,
@@ -66,7 +67,9 @@ export function FocusScreen({
     </Card>
   )
 
-  if (!focus) {
+  // The scheduler returns a FocusView even when the backlog has no open work —
+  // treat "no now/next/later" as empty, not just an absent `focus`.
+  if (!focus || (!focus.now && !focus.next && !focus.later)) {
     return (
       <EmptyState
         icon="coffee"
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/renderer/src/components/screens/standup-screen.tsx b/apps/desktop/src/renderer/src/components/screens/standup-screen.tsx
index 533995d..41b0ace 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/renderer/src/components/screens/standup-screen.tsx
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/renderer/src/components/screens/standup-screen.tsx
@@ -161,39 +161,59 @@ export function StandupScreen({
         </Section>
 
         <Section overline="Stale blockers" order={3}>
-          <div
-            role="button"
-            tabIndex={0}
-            onClick={() => onOpenIssue(NAG_REF)}
-            onKeyDown={(e) => {
-              if (e.key === 'Enter') onOpenIssue(NAG_REF)
-            }}
-            style={{
-              display: 'flex',
-              gap: 10,
-              alignItems: 'flex-start',
-              cursor: 'pointer',
-              background: 'var(--warn-tint)',
-              borderRadius: 'var(--radius-2)',
-              padding: '12px 14px',
-            }}
-          >
-            <span style={{ color: 'var(--warn)', display: 'inline-flex', marginTop: 2 }}>
-              <Icon name="clock" size={15} />
-            </span>
-            <div style={{ flex: 1 }}>
-              <div style={{ display: 'flex', alignItems: 'center', gap: 8, flexWrap: 'wrap' }}>
-                <span style={{ font: '500 12.5px var(--font-mono)', color: 'var(--ink-1)' }}>#{s.nag.id}</span>
-                <Badge tone="warn" dot>
-                  steeping {s.nag.days}
-                </Badge>
-                <span style={{ font: '400 11.5px var(--font-mono)', color: 'var(--ink-3)' }}>
-                  blocks {s.nag.blocks.join(', ')}
-                </span>
-              </div>
-              <p style={{ font: 'var(--text-agent)', color: 'var(--ink-2)', margin: '5px 0 0' }}>{s.nag.text}</p>
+          {s.nag.id === 0 ? (
+            // Calm sentinel — nothing is over-steeping; render just the reassurance,
+            // no issue chrome, no click target (there's no #0 to open).
+            <div
+              style={{
+                display: 'flex',
+                gap: 10,
+                alignItems: 'center',
+                background: 'var(--paper-2)',
+                borderRadius: 'var(--radius-2)',
+                padding: '12px 14px',
+              }}
+            >
+              <span style={{ color: 'var(--ok)', display: 'inline-flex' }}>
+                <Icon name="circle-check" size={15} />
+              </span>
+              <p style={{ font: 'var(--text-agent)', color: 'var(--ink-2)', margin: 0 }}>{s.nag.text}</p>
             </div>
-          </div>
+          ) : (
+            <div
+              role="button"
+              tabIndex={0}
+              onClick={() => onOpenIssue(NAG_REF)}
+              onKeyDown={(e) => {
+                if (e.key === 'Enter') onOpenIssue(NAG_REF)
+              }}
+              style={{
+                display: 'flex',
+                gap: 10,
+                alignItems: 'flex-start',
+                cursor: 'pointer',
+                background: 'var(--warn-tint)',
+                borderRadius: 'var(--radius-2)',
+                padding: '12px 14px',
+              }}
+            >
+              <span style={{ color: 'var(--warn)', display: 'inline-flex', marginTop: 2 }}>
+                <Icon name="clock" size={15} />
+              </span>
+              <div style={{ flex: 1 }}>
+                <div style={{ display: 'flex', alignItems: 'center', gap: 8, flexWrap: 'wrap' }}>
+                  <span style={{ font: '500 12.5px var(--font-mono)', color: 'var(--ink-1)' }}>#{s.nag.id}</span>
+                  <Badge tone="warn" dot>
+                    steeping {s.nag.days}
+                  </Badge>
+                  <span style={{ font: '400 11.5px var(--font-mono)', color: 'var(--ink-3)' }}>
+                    blocks {s.nag.blocks.join(', ')}
+                  </span>
+                </div>
+                <p style={{ font: 'var(--text-agent)', color: 'var(--ink-2)', margin: '5px 0 0' }}>{s.nag.text}</p>
+              </div>
+            </div>
+          )}
         </Section>
 
         <footer