There is a new store that just opened in Bowling Green. I
had a coupon, so the boys and I checked it out one day when we were in town.
When I got to the check out, the cashier handed me a slip of paper containing
steps to get coupons and store updates. All I had to do was sign up online.
There was even an app for your smart phone. After she finished her rehearsed little
speech, I asked if I could just sign up for coupons using a pen and paper. She
apologized and said no. That was the only option. I told her that I didn’t have
Internet at home or a smart phone. She stared at me blankly for a few seconds
and then went on and on about how she couldn’t survive without the Internet.
After she was finished, I thanked her for the few things I bought, took my bag,
and left.
When we moved to the homestead, we didn’t think getting
Internet service would be an issue. But, it was, and it’s sort of a long story,
so I’ll spare you. So until yesterday, life this past month has been without
the Internet except for the handful of times I had access in town at the
library, Spencer’s Coffeehouse, and Chick-fil-a. It took some getting used to, for sure. For a
while I felt really disconnected. (We can pick up most of the major networks
and PBS using antennae and Bryan still had Internet access at work so he checked
on some things for me when he was in town.) If I needed to know something, I couldn’t
just hop on the computer and find out what I was looking for (like addresses,
phone numbers, recipes, events, bank balances) like I used to. I couldn’t blog
and publish posts whenever I felt like it. I had to write in advance and post
when I had access to the Internet. I may not have a smart phone, but I did stop
by the computer frequently throughout the day while I was home to know what the
latest facebook status was or most recent Pinterest pin. My email was always
open and I had Pandora playing almost all the time. We watched documentaries in
the evenings and the boys watched a few favorite shows on Netflix.
Slowly over time, I realized life with no Internet wasn’t so
bad. At times I’ve even been thankful to not have the distractions of the
Internet. I am certain I couldn’t have accomplished as much as I have this past
month! Yes, having the Internet is nice and perhaps even helpful at times, but
maybe I really needed an Internet detox. Now that we have Internet again, and
not that I really want to, but I know that if I had to I could survive without it.
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