diff --git a/foodie_automator_google.py b/foodie_automator_google.py
index bb53fa8..d570bb6 100644
--- a/foodie_automator_google.py
+++ b/foodie_automator_google.py
@@ -28,7 +28,7 @@ from foodie_utils import (
     is_interesting, generate_title_from_summary, summarize_with_gpt4o,
     generate_category_from_summary, post_to_wp, prepare_post_data,
     select_best_author, smart_image_and_filter, get_flickr_image,
-    get_next_author_round_robin, check_author_rate_limit
+    get_next_author_round_robin, check_author_rate_limit, update_system_activity
 )
 from foodie_hooks import get_dynamic_hook, get_viral_share_prompt
 from dotenv import load_dotenv
@@ -451,6 +451,55 @@ def curate_from_google_trends(posted_titles_data, posted_titles, used_images_dat
     except Exception as e:
         logging.error(f"Unexpected error in curate_from_google_trends: {e}", exc_info=True)
         return None, None, False
+    
+# System Activity Tracking
+def update_system_activity(script_name, status, pid=None):
+    """Update the system activity JSON file with the script's status."""
+    activity_file = "/home/shane/foodie_automator/system_activity.json"
+    activity_data = []
+    
+    # Load existing data
+    if os.path.exists(activity_file):
+        try:
+            with open(activity_file, 'r') as f:
+                activity_data = json.load(f)
+        except json.JSONDecodeError:
+            logging.error("Corrupted system_activity.json, resetting to empty list")
+    
+    # Find or create entry for the script
+    script_entry = next((entry for entry in activity_data if entry["script_name"] == script_name), None)
+    if not script_entry:
+        script_entry = {
+            "script_name": script_name,
+            "pid": None,
+            "start_time": None,
+            "stop_time": None,
+            "status": "stopped"
+        }
+        activity_data.append(script_entry)
+    
+    # Update the entry
+    if status == "running":
+        script_entry.update({
+            "pid": pid,
+            "start_time": datetime.now(timezone.utc).isoformat(),
+            "stop_time": None,
+            "status": "running"
+        })
+    elif status == "stopped":
+        script_entry.update({
+            "pid": None,
+            "stop_time": datetime.now(timezone.utc).isoformat(),
+            "status": "stopped"
+        })
+    
+    # Save updated data
+    try:
+        with open(activity_file, 'w') as f:
+            json.dump(activity_data, f, indent=2)
+        logging.info(f"Updated system activity: {script_name} is {status}")
+    except Exception as e:
+        logging.error(f"Failed to update system_activity.json: {e}")
 
 def run_google_trends_automator():
     lock_fd = None
diff --git a/foodie_automator_reddit.py b/foodie_automator_reddit.py
index 3936be9..926d51f 100644
--- a/foodie_automator_reddit.py
+++ b/foodie_automator_reddit.py
@@ -28,7 +28,7 @@ from foodie_utils import (
     is_interesting, generate_title_from_summary, summarize_with_gpt4o,
     generate_category_from_summary, post_to_wp, prepare_post_data,
     select_best_author, smart_image_and_filter, get_flickr_image,
-    get_next_author_round_robin, check_author_rate_limit
+    get_next_author_round_robin, check_author_rate_limit, update_system_activity
 )
 from foodie_hooks import get_dynamic_hook, get_viral_share_prompt
 import fcntl
diff --git a/foodie_automator_rss.py b/foodie_automator_rss.py
index aafd53c..138800f 100644
--- a/foodie_automator_rss.py
+++ b/foodie_automator_rss.py
@@ -28,7 +28,7 @@ from foodie_utils import (
     is_interesting, generate_title_from_summary, summarize_with_gpt4o,
     generate_category_from_summary, post_to_wp, prepare_post_data,
     select_best_author, smart_image_and_filter, get_flickr_image,
-    get_next_author_round_robin, check_author_rate_limit
+    get_next_author_round_robin, check_author_rate_limit, update_system_activity
 )
 from foodie_hooks import get_dynamic_hook, get_viral_share_prompt
 from dotenv import load_dotenv
diff --git a/foodie_engagement_tweet.py b/foodie_engagement_tweet.py
index 94882b5..cb4d9fb 100644
--- a/foodie_engagement_tweet.py
+++ b/foodie_engagement_tweet.py
@@ -8,7 +8,7 @@ import fcntl
 import os
 from datetime import datetime, timedelta, timezone
 from openai import OpenAI
-from foodie_utils import post_tweet, AUTHORS, SUMMARY_MODEL, check_author_rate_limit, load_json_file
+from foodie_utils import post_tweet, AUTHORS, SUMMARY_MODEL, check_author_rate_limit, load_json_file, update_system_activity
 from foodie_config import X_API_CREDENTIALS, AUTHOR_BACKGROUNDS_FILE
 from dotenv import load_dotenv
 
diff --git a/foodie_weekly_thread.py b/foodie_weekly_thread.py
index 1932ac4..3395cfe 100644
--- a/foodie_weekly_thread.py
+++ b/foodie_weekly_thread.py
@@ -10,7 +10,7 @@ import time
 from datetime import datetime, timedelta, timezone
 import tweepy
 from openai import OpenAI
-from foodie_utils import post_tweet, AUTHORS, SUMMARY_MODEL, load_json_file, check_author_rate_limit
+from foodie_utils import post_tweet, AUTHORS, SUMMARY_MODEL, load_json_file, check_author_rate_limit, update_system_activity
 from foodie_config import X_API_CREDENTIALS, RECENT_POSTS_FILE
 from dotenv import load_dotenv