Unplugged
I've made it for almost 20 hours without my cell phone. How did I get so dependent and wrapped up in technology? I’m one that says the old ways are the good ways , but yet I live my life around this little computer packed into a 3” by 6” by ½ “ plastic package. I sleep beside it and it wakes me up. It keeps track and reminds me of any appointments that I have. It tells me where I’m at. Wait a minute! Why does my phone need to tell me where I’m at? And how did I ever get so dependent on it to tell me where I’m going anyways?
Well yesterday my phone came to its final end. Several weeks ago I bent over to pick something up. My phone slipped out of my chest pocket and landed face down on the gravel. Unfortunately for me, I had procrastinated in putting on a new screen protector. When I picked it up off of the gravel the whole screen looked like a spider web. And since the phone was only a few months old, I forced myself to continue using it. It worked good enough to get by with, but little chips were starting to come out of the screen. There was actually a spot at the bottom where you could see the insides. Since we mostly buy cheap phones, getting the screen replaced would cost more than a new phone. And then the thought occurred to me that with the help of YouTube, I might be able to take the screen off of my old phone and put it on my new phone. The screens looked very similar to me. And so that's what I attempted. Apparently the Moto E and the Moto G screens aren’t exactly interchangeable. I got both phones disassembled and with more difficulty than expected and pretty much destroyed them both. And after several attempts at making one good one out of two bad ones, I gave up.
And so now I’m phoneless. But, believe it or not, I’m still functioning. I enjoyed my usual “pour over” coffee and a dip in the good book along with a slice of Pumpernickel bread smothered in strawberry jam and butter first thing this morning.
It seems that almost everywhere that you go in the lower 48 there is some sort of cell service. Often it's poor service and we complain about it. There are lots of places around my house where I can drop into a hollow and not have service for several hours but sooner or later I’ll cross a ridge or hit that perfect spot and the emails and texts will come rolling in. When I’m hunting in those spots and know that I won’t be moving around much, I try to give Jenelle specifics as to my whereabouts. It's comforting for my family to know where I’m at and to be reachable. The same goes for me when Jenelle is out on a bike ride or a run. I just want her to be able to get a hold of me if needed. And those aren’t necessarily bad things. But how did we get so attached to our phones? Forty short years ago there was no such thing. Somehow we all survived. Or at least those of us that are still here.
I’m reminded of the canoe trip that Jenelle and the kids and I went on into the Boundary Waters Wilderness Area along the Minnesota/Canada border. Not even a hint of service. Even driving there, we lost service a long time before we ever got into our canoes. There was furnace trouble at work and since the furnace was my baby, I was feeling guilty for going on vacation at a bad time. I was trying to stay in touch and offer my knowledge as much as possible. As we lost service there was this good/bad feeling of feeling out of control. As the trip went on, a peace came over me like I hadn’t felt in a long time. So much stress is brought on by the simple act of being accessible to everyone and everything in the workplace and the world. And there’s no way to stop it. Or is there?
After our trip we were heading south when Jenelle’s phone started to ding. I chose to leave mine turned off for several hours and to bask in the peace of a refreshed mind. And when I felt ready to face the world, wow so many dings. It's really stunning when you realize how many interactions and how information goes from your phone to your brain in a week's time. And believe it or not, after a week the world was still turning. The furnace at work was working and the guys were blowing glass.
And looking back, I’m going to try to be more intentional about turning my phone off. I’m going to set a continuous reminder so that I turn my phone off on a regular basis. Wait! I don’t have a phone! Should I get a new one? Yeah, I probably should. I guess I’ll order a new one today. I wonder how long I can leave it unplugged?
