I was thinking recently about how different travel felt before I had a smartphone -- how I felt like I was really going somewhere, risking loneliness and getting lost and feeling completely immersed, for better or worse. It's different now, when I'm in constant contact with everyone, to feel as though I'm really going away.
It's a struggle and your description of trying to disconnect is very apt. At the beginning of 2019 I tried my damnedest to live in an apartment with no Wi-Fi whatsoever. For the first few weeks it felt like withdrawal and I got a ton of reading done, despite that boredom and the pangs from it. But then, both employers pretty much required a constant internet connection to look at materials for work, so I had get that XFinity shitbox router.
I am in the midst of getting a new phone, a cheap android instead of my iphone 6. Not a flip phone, but trying to stay somewhat low tech. My real addiction is to the laptop and I need to develop new habits. You and Matt and others give me hope that the culture, or at least parts of it, will find a way out of this trap.
Matt Walsh in his recent Tucker Carlson interview said he and his wife do not allow his five children to be around screens. Oldest is 11 I think. Anyway, it was encouraging to see someone tackling this issue, like yourself. I agree with Beth that you are very brave to do so, and I admire you for it.
Wonderful. I really want to do this when I leave my current job and no longer have to manage professional social media. It pisses me off to no end that so much of social media that professional are required to do cannot be done via desktop. Staring at my phone aside, *working* on a phone is so beyond miserable. I do not understand how people who write on their phones do it.
I love this essay and I can’t wait to hear about your experience in Cuba. I traveled to a few different parts of the island three years and I still draw hope for the world from my time there.
Last summer I bought a flip phone - not a dumbphone because I wanted to stay in touch with my family and friends overseas. It’s helped but I’m desperate for the real deal. This week I found myself saying aloud, “Maybe I need a job that doesn’t require a computer.” Reading this essay reminded me that facing our fears around our over-reliance on tech is possible. Thank you.
Also, congrats on winning a prestigious award! It’s well deserved.
I just want a phone. not a little computer that duplicates the lap top computer that I already have. We rely too much on technology for everything. I had a friend who ditched the iPhone as an experiment and went to a flip phone, but then couldn't get into any events he had tickets for. I'm pondering going to android when and if I need a new phone, for the sake of a change. I rely on my little robot (iPhone) to do much for me. I deleted a lot of apps this morning. progress.
Thank you for this post! I think this is the final piece of encouragement I need to finally try to give up my smartphone and make the switch. It sucks how dependent everything in our society is on the smartphone. The idea of living without one is unthinkable (iPhone realism, there is no alternative).
1. You are brave
2. This worries me
3. Maybe you need an emergencies only line
Tab has not responded to my last two texts. Maybe she didn't get them? Like you, all this worries me. And I also highly admire her for going there.
I was thinking recently about how different travel felt before I had a smartphone -- how I felt like I was really going somewhere, risking loneliness and getting lost and feeling completely immersed, for better or worse. It's different now, when I'm in constant contact with everyone, to feel as though I'm really going away.
It's a struggle and your description of trying to disconnect is very apt. At the beginning of 2019 I tried my damnedest to live in an apartment with no Wi-Fi whatsoever. For the first few weeks it felt like withdrawal and I got a ton of reading done, despite that boredom and the pangs from it. But then, both employers pretty much required a constant internet connection to look at materials for work, so I had get that XFinity shitbox router.
I am in the midst of getting a new phone, a cheap android instead of my iphone 6. Not a flip phone, but trying to stay somewhat low tech. My real addiction is to the laptop and I need to develop new habits. You and Matt and others give me hope that the culture, or at least parts of it, will find a way out of this trap.
Matt Walsh in his recent Tucker Carlson interview said he and his wife do not allow his five children to be around screens. Oldest is 11 I think. Anyway, it was encouraging to see someone tackling this issue, like yourself. I agree with Beth that you are very brave to do so, and I admire you for it.
Wonderful. I really want to do this when I leave my current job and no longer have to manage professional social media. It pisses me off to no end that so much of social media that professional are required to do cannot be done via desktop. Staring at my phone aside, *working* on a phone is so beyond miserable. I do not understand how people who write on their phones do it.
I love this essay and I can’t wait to hear about your experience in Cuba. I traveled to a few different parts of the island three years and I still draw hope for the world from my time there.
Last summer I bought a flip phone - not a dumbphone because I wanted to stay in touch with my family and friends overseas. It’s helped but I’m desperate for the real deal. This week I found myself saying aloud, “Maybe I need a job that doesn’t require a computer.” Reading this essay reminded me that facing our fears around our over-reliance on tech is possible. Thank you.
Also, congrats on winning a prestigious award! It’s well deserved.
I just want a phone. not a little computer that duplicates the lap top computer that I already have. We rely too much on technology for everything. I had a friend who ditched the iPhone as an experiment and went to a flip phone, but then couldn't get into any events he had tickets for. I'm pondering going to android when and if I need a new phone, for the sake of a change. I rely on my little robot (iPhone) to do much for me. I deleted a lot of apps this morning. progress.
I love this post so much! You're inspiring me!
Thank you for this post! I think this is the final piece of encouragement I need to finally try to give up my smartphone and make the switch. It sucks how dependent everything in our society is on the smartphone. The idea of living without one is unthinkable (iPhone realism, there is no alternative).
great topic.