Tuesday, July 20, 2010

Off the Grid

O is for Off the Grid.

I left my phone in Seattle. It was cleverly hidden in my bedsheets after my 5 AM wakeup call, and I forgot to put it in my purse as I left my friend's apartment with half-open eyes and zero brainpower. It's slowly making its way back to MN, on the cheapest FedEx service available. I will be phone-less for another 2 days.

At first, I panicked- how would my mom find me at the airport? How will I get in touch with everyone?

Then, after finding mom in 3 minutes outside baggage claim and alerting roommate and BF of my situation using her phone, I felt pretty dang free.

Also, and this is embarrassing to admit, I feel very engaged. Without the influx of texts, emails, and phone calls, I have no choice but to be 100% in the moment. As it turns out, being available all the time has put a small strain on my relationships, and I'm glad that I had the chance to bust out of the smartphone habits that have consumed me over the past few months. Last night I had three face-to-face life chats with 3 of my favorite people, and I never once wondered who else needed me.

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3 comments:

LH said...

do you plan to remain off the grid? I'm curious about this.

TMW said...

She couldn't do it if she tried.

That iPhone is her crack.

Gina Marie said...

No, LH, I really couldn't. I would argue that I also have to be available to a certain extent for work, as well.

I do want to be more mindful of the time that I waste using it, and the attention I pay to the people around me though.