Digital Detox

Class is over, but I couldn't resist posting this article that I found in the New York Times,

Learning to Let Go: First, Turn Off the Phone,

from last Friday. It is relevant to the class, and also to the idea of managed online use.

At this moment I yearn for a vacation from digital life. This class has brought to consciousness, through examination, all of the addictive and compulsive ways that I myself have been indoctrinated into the digital melee. I want the information and the ease of use, but I also find that it pushes things out of my life that I also want - like hikes in nature, meditation, reflective time, etc.

I hope that initiatives like this "Digital Detox" space catch on. We seem to be playing with our brains when we simply succumb to the manipulations of digital existence without reflection. Simply thinking I can resist the temptations of my devices while they are in easy proximity seems naive at this point. A "retreat" from devices seems more sensible in my case. Perhaps you won't hear from me for awhile...