- Is increasing connectivity a bad thing? When was the last time you considered yourself "disconnected?" Was it a positive or negative experience?
The last time I felt truly "disconnected" was my first trip to Mexico. We stayed for a week in a rented house in Puerto Penasco, a small town on the Sea of Cortez. The house didn't even have a phone, let alone a computer or a television. And for me, it was a mostly positive experience. I found being disconnected very relaxing. I spent a long time just sitting on the beach and watching the ocean.
But even that disconnect did not last the whole of the week. There were brief pockets of connectivity, and I can't say I was disappointed to find them. There was an internet cafe in town, and I remember stopping in there more than once during our stay to send/receive e-mails and pictures. Most restaurants had televisions, and I found myself glancing at news programs that I would have ignored back home. Being unplugged was a nice break, but I definitely wouldn't want to live that way full time.
That trip was over 10 years ago, and I don't think I've been "unplugged" since. Our next visit to Mexico was completely different. My dad carried an international cell phone. We stayed in a touristy Ixtapa hotel, complete with television and internet access in the lobby that we would use maybe once a day. On our most recent trip to Italy, all of us had working cell phones that we used constantly. My dad brought his laptop computer and we uploaded pictures to our family's website almost every night. I could even check my Fantasy Football teams. Not only did we have television, we had the cable package! (In Tuscany anyway)
I think this evolution of connectivity is inevitable. And I don't think that's necessarily a bad thing, as long as we are using connectivity as a tool of convenience and not an obligation. I think a lot of people feel slighted if they called a person.....and *gasp*.....the person didn't answer. Or on the flip side, they would feel it was rude of them to ignore a buzzing phone, an incoming e-mail, or the latest tweet. People can feel socially obligated to be connected 24/7, and I think it's this feeling of obligation that can be a negative.
My feeling is that connectivity in itself is neither good nor bad. Technology is tool that we can put to good uses and to bad uses. If you choose to be plugged in full-time, if you enjoy it, then I think it's a good thing. But if you feel that you HAVE to be plugged in, then it becomes stressful, and I think it's time to consider a behavior change. It's not the devices themselves that are dangerous, it's how we use them.
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http://www.s-anand.net/calvinandhobbes.html#19930610
The last time I was truly disconnected was on my family RV trip out west to the Grand Canyon and surrounding western states a few years back. I can remember finding a small internet cafe in some town in the middle of Utah and just having an overwhelming feeling of relief. It was weird; it wasn't like I was unhappy being disconnected, but I just felt out of touch with the rest of the world. I suppose it's human nature to want to be "with it", so it was a negative experience being disconnected in that sense.
I've been trying to be more aware of my own connectivity the past day and half (since I read your post), and it's made my car rides more interesting thinking about it.
I've been thinking about the past a lot, like 300 years ago kind of past. We are about to be hit with another 20 or so inches of snow this weekend, so Grace and I have been preparing ourselves for the storm and the weekend indoors. Grace and I, and the whole state of Maryland, have been preparing for the last few days (in fact, it's just begun as I type). We've had reports, alerts, forecasts, updates, projections, radar- everything to stay connected and current to the happenings of this storm. And I'm grateful for all of it. The increased connectivity has helped me plan ahead. But can you imagine 300 years ago and having no idea 20+ inches of snow were about to hit your home? Or maybe you knew snow was coming, but would you seriously be ready for 20 inches? Being connected the way we are today is a blessing in this sense, and has probably saved thousands of lives. As you said, "Technology is tool that we can put to good uses and to bad uses."
But being so connected has also had an adverse effect on my life. You were spot on when you said that it can make your life more stressful. Being a teacher, I'm constantly connected to my students and work outside of the classroom- through email, website, etc. This does have its benefits, but at the same time I feel as if I can never leave my work at work. And it wears on me. I've been trying, however, to leave my work at work over the weekends. I try not to bring home any papers, I don't check my email, and I try to focus my energy in other places (MSU basketball games, haha). In essence, I try to disconnect. And to be honest, I've felt less stress.
So to wrap this long comment up, I'm with you. It can be good or bad, but it's all how we use it. Being connected is part of our lifestyle now, and is therefore an essential part of our everyday lives. But it's about using the technology for our benefit, not our detriment
I was almost completely disconnected on our honeymoon in Mexico. My connection to the "outside world" was the TV I occasionally watched and the USA Today I read every morning. Out of fear that I would somehow rack up a huge bill, I turned my cellphone off all week. I also didn't venture the computer room. And it was exactly what I needed. I am growing more and more resentful of my cellphone. I don't like that I am available anytime (mostly for work).
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