The Disconnection Experiment

“The Disconnection Experiment” we were assigned in class has us not using media through technology.  This means we can’t use a computer, television, radio, and smart phone.  While I am not as technology dependent as others, I still think it will be hard for me to disconnect from my devices which I have integrated into my life.

--What day did you choose to “disconnect?”

July 20, 2016

--What would you usually be doing on this day? How did your plans change because your “disconnected” status?

Normally I would be completing my homework from my online class and also watching television and playing video games during breaks.  My plans changed, because I chose not to do my homework this day and rather planned to do work around the house so that I wasn’t staring at the wall all day.

-- What were your feelings that day? (Freedom, liberation, misery, boredom?)

I do like getting out into nature, and some places like Egypt valley or AEP reclamation land doesn’t have cell or internet service, so I do know what it is like to be disconnected.  However, this day it was the worst heat and humidity of the summer, so after work I limited my time outside, which left me inside most of the day after work.  I was pretty bored that day because I didn’t have a lot of inside work to do, because my wife had been on vacation so the house was already clean with no new messes.  The misery came from realizing that I used food as a crutch, so it actually made me feel worst that day.

-- What media did you miss most and why?

I missed my computer and internet the most.  I use my computer to research, listen to music, watch videos, and play games.  I can live without a television and even my smartphone, because I can do everything I need on my computer.

-- What sorts of things did you do instead?

I spent a little time in the garage working on building furniture for my kitchen, but the heat and humidity got to me, so for the rest of the day I ate, slept, and filed my mail.

-- Were you able to completely avoid all media? If you could not, what was the “breaking point”?

I was not able to completely avoid all media, at work they have music playing, so I did have radio and music for my morning during work.  Also, with my wife being gone, I had to answer my phone at night to talk to her, so my whole day wasn’t disconnected, but majority of it was in the “dark.”