After cutting my New Years plans short, I decided the evening would be better alone. I went home, made last minute phone calls and amends, and uncorked a bottle of Taittinger promptly at midnight. After toasting the new year with neighbors, one of my first resolutions was to further remove myself from the grid and temporarily disconnect internet.
Six months ago I yanked television service from my house and sold my Xbox. Making the decision to disconnect internet didn’t seem like that big a stretch knowing I was further removing myself from world events. After all, I do have internet at my store locations as well as on my iPhone so I couldn’t imagine being totally lost.
“Off the grid” truly means to be disassociated with everything. If I were true to the word, I’d generate my own electricity, grow my own food, and probably wouldn’t have a phone. For obvious reasons I decided I need electricity and a phone. January without heat and a business owner without a phone isn’t sensible.
My generation used computers very little for day-to-day stuff and because of that it’s been ingrained in me to minimize my reliance on technology. My business related paperwork is all done with pen and paper rather than entered into a computer. I prefer telephone to text. Many of my bank transactions are made at the branch rather than online or with an ATM. I simply don’t use technology to its fullest.
Computers and the work they do are magnificent and if they weren’t I simply wouldn’t have customers. Nonetheless, without internet my computer is a big Smith-Corona. Internet gives me access to Netflix, Facebook, YouTube and all the other productivity inducing sites (I say that with a hint of sarcasm).
Let’s face it, I’m used to being connected. I’ve made my living being connected to the world. Last Sunday I wrote the Tech Talk article fully expecting to open Gmail, attach, and send until I remembered it’s an impossible task. Lucky for me I keep a stash of unpublished, prewritten articles in Google Documents and used my last one. Tonight leaves me no choice but to create a work-around.
Without internet and television I have achieved more. My experiment was meant to last a week but I combined it with a pseudo-vacation: allowing my company to run itself and avoiding extra work. So out of fairness, I had a bit of extra time on my hands as well as no internet ball and chain.
This month I managed to help a friend hang a drop ceiling, worked on two bathrooms, painted two rooms, and even helped a little old lady cross the road. Phew! I’ve spent more time with friends and family than I have in a long time and didn’t have that nagging feeling I could have done more. I truly feel productive.
One of the follies of not having television or internet is knowing I can’t just catch a show. I don’t normally watch sports on TV anyways, but tonight’s game was the last of the playoffs – it was a must see. After making my Sunday drop off I pulled into a Phillipston cantina in time to catch the last minute or two. Though not as convenient as home, I still had the option to catch part of the game and commiserate with strangers.
My kids have a different take on their nutty father’s situation. Because my tech-laden daughters had limited internet access we spent a grand total of two hours of awake time at my house each day. After the initial shock, I think they were more than impressed with how we spent our time. This week I plan to reconnect internet service and have made a decision to limit my time behind the monitor.
(Jeromy Patriquin is the President of Laptop & Computer Repair, Inc. located at 509 Main St. in Gardner. You can text him directly at (978) 413-2840 or visit www.LocalComputerWiz.com.)