Sorry for the later-than-usual post-time for this, but…
Today, I started a grand experiment. Because of a fascinating interview I heard last week on NPR (and my follow-up reading), I started thinking about getting rid of electronics for regular portion of my life (I could never dump it all, man, this IS the 21st Century). So I came up with something I thought I could deal with:
#MonitorlessMondayMornings
From midnight Sunday night to noon on Monday, nothing with a monitor or a speaker. No computer (so no internet, natch). No TV (though it was on in the background as Lisa and I had breakfast–I’m not forcing her to try this cockamamie scheme…and we’re in the midst of a heatwave so she needed to figure out just how hot it will be in her non-air-conditioned classroom). No smartphone (though I will answer if I receive a call…or an urgent text). No radio (so no music).
And?
It was surprisingly fracking wonderful. Don’t get me wrong. Every time I walked by the computer, I felt the urge. Same with the TV in the bedroom. But, in the morning…
Breakfast. Finished And the Mountains Echoed. Workout. Wrote a 3-5 page paper for my Modern American Lit class…and without my Chromebook, I had to long-hand it (ah, haven’t had a writer’s cramp in AGES…and it felt just great, thank you very much). Wrote this entry. And half of Wednesdays. Shower. Rehearsed the history project.
And still had time for thought and reflection. [I never realized how much time I’ve wasted on checking email, Facebook, and just distracted surfing…]
Mission accomplished.
This is going to become a weekly thing (at least until I’m gainfully employed full-time again). So be ready for more later-than-usual Monday posts.
Give it a shot…you may just like it.