Aug 17th, 2009
Home again, home again, jiggity jig
I last posted here about three weeks ago, shortly before we headed out of town and up to Vermont for our annual two-week stay in a little cabin next to a little lake. We got home yesterday afternoon, unloaded the car (which resulted in the living room looking like a laundromat exploded in the middle of it), and spent the evening settling back into being home. And recovering from the drive, too. In an attempt to avoid the hell known as The New Jersey Turnpike on the Weekend, we decided to take a slightly longer (in miles, but not usually in time) and decidedly more scenic route through the charmingly named Delaware Water Gap. Unfortunately, one construction zones and several accident sites delayed us considerably.
During our vacation, I was completely Internet-free. The cottage has a (glacially slow) dial-up connection that I’ve used in past years, but crawling the Internet when you’re used to surfing it Point Break style is just too painful. So this year I opted to stay away from it entirely while in Vermont. This also served as an experiment of sorts to see what it would be like to avoid the constantly flowing river of information in which I usually dip my toes a few times daily. The result? Well, I didn’t go insane. So that’s a good sign.
Ultimately I found that I didn’t really miss the Internet–not in the short term, at least. I’m glad to have it in my life and happy it’s here to help me keep in touch with old friends, meet new friends, learn new things, and generally keep my brain from turning into mush. But the Internet hasn’t always been around, and sometimes it’s nice to step back from it and pay more attention to what’s going on around you. And when what’s going on around you is Vermont in August, well, then paying attention to it isn’t really that hard.
7 Responses to “Home again, home again, jiggity jig”
I’m glad you had fun and I’m even more glad you’re back. Perhaps I should go internet-free sometime as well.
Mm-hm. What a wonderful two weeks that must have been. I think that what works for me is chunks of internet-free time, interspersed with chunks of internet-obsessing times. I can’t do it in moderation. But those free chunks end up helping me be way more productive!
Sounds like a fabulous vacation!
(But the Internets are glad to have you back, too.)
It is nice to take an electronics break, isn’t it?
Going Internet-free is nice for short periods of time, but not something I would do all the time. I am too dependent on it for keeping in touch with friends and getting information. But I think the breaks give a chance to reassess which of that information I need and which I don’t.
Welcome home!!!!! Two weeks in Vermont sounds like a slice of heaven. I’ve never been but can only imagine. It’s always nice to take a break from our technology driven world.
Oh Vermont…so jealous!
I’ve been trying to have “computer free Sundays” at our house. It’s been mostly good, expect for when I need a bit of information: how to make my favorite pudding, the hours to the library, a phone number. That’s when I realize how much I rely on getting info so quickly.