ANALOGUE WEEKEND
There are many people I know who laud the benefits of going off-line and I totally get it. The only problem I have is that some of the programs I use are tied to the internet and cannot be used properly if not connected. I also find the temptation to be almost impossible to avoid as I prefer to type rather than write in longhand my blog articles and story assignments. It is a much more efficient use of my time.
The assignment: go offline - for a day, for a weekend. Maybe it will become a regular thing!
This was easier said than done, that's for sure! I took a look at my weekly calendar and decided to try it. I put my iPhone on "airplane" mode and turned off the Wi-Fi in the house for a day, from 7AM to 5PM. (My kids attend an e-school and need the internet for homework and assignments.) Well, I have to admit, my day was productive!
- I learned to write my blog articles and story assignments in Microsoft Word.
- I used my analogue academic calendar rather than iCal.
- I cleaned up my desktop and some of the files.
- I caught up on my Project Life and organized some digital art files in iPhoto.
- I read part of my book for the Patti Digh Book Club.
I purposely spent my time on the computer so that I could get used to not clicking, and clicking, and then clicking some more. I didn't go down any rabbit holes - just took a few detours. It was all tremendously productive - and enlightening. No cheating, I did not turn on the phone or engage the router. I'm thinking of dedicating one day a week - and maybe a whole weekend a month to turning off the Wi-Fi. It'll definitely be something we do this summer.
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Like Bree Hester, I believe you choose to be happy. Sure there are bad (out of your control) things that happen, but how you handle them is completely up to you. Your choices are your responsibility - there is no blame, no shame, no nothing but accountability. Your attitude is your decision. I choose to be happy. Happy within the context of not wearing the proverbial rose-coloured glasses or any expectation that those who populate my life have made the same choice :) Last October, Bree put together 31 DAYS TO A HAPPIER YOU and, armed with her PDF, I'm using March - that dreary time between winter and spring that seems to drag on forever - to make the conscious choice to be happy every day this month!
