Last week for two days the Internet at home was out of service. We suspect it’s due to all the digging that PG&E has been doing in the neighborhood. So who is responsible for the bill credit? The beleaguered energy company, or Comcast?
Nevertheless, the total lack of Internet access provided an excellent opportunity to do some digital detoxing. I couldn’t even rely on cellular service from my phone. Verizon is a dead-zone in my first floor dungeon of a studio.
As a reader of many books, it would be too easy to grab the next one on the shelf. I wanted to challenge myself: can I truly do nothing for the few hours before bed? Heck, can I even eat a meal without looking at anything that’s on the Internet?
I’m not some luddite that think we should abstain from the glorious dopamine drips that a modern Internet connection provides. I greatly enjoy spending countless hours on Youtube, and that’s never going to stop. A cabin on Walden pound without Internet is not some badge of honor. The online world is a wondrous place to be enjoyed.
Though I think it’s an important exercise to be able to sit still and do nothing for an extended period. I’m not saying you have to "raw-dog” a plane ride. But if you can’t do it at all - your fingers itches for the smartphone in less than a minute of nothing doing, then there might be some negatively addictive tendencies to look into.
Given the option I would take having an active home Internet over deadness every single time. But when the network does go down, it’s good to know that I remain capable of not going stir crazy.
UFO.