Farewell my friends! Today is the first day of my Thoreau Challenge. I will be going without 'technology' for the next 7 days. I will end on the 11th at midnight. I say technology because technology is really just the most up to date anything that we have today. For instance, a crossbow used to be technology. With this in mind, what does the Thoreau Challenge really entail? One could potentially take this to many spectrums. I will not be using any electronic devices. To be more specific, I will not be using any communicative device or device used for entertainment. In other words I will not be using an device that could potentially be used to talk to people electronically, i.e., my phone, computer, or for entertainment, i.e. my computer (again), ipod, or my t.v. (that should be easy considering I don't have one). Technically, using a clock to tell time, and eating refrigerated food could be considered using electronic technology but I think for the sake of this experiment we can rule that out.
So, now on to how my life will be changing over the next week:
Proportionally, I use my computer for homework for the majority of the time. This won't be changing due to the parameters of the experiment. The second biggest use is music. No listening to music for a week. This should be easy because half the time that I'm listening to music it's so that I can learn to play it myself. I may not be making much progress in the next week but that will give me time to work on my own songs! I also spend a lot of time on High Existence conversing on their forums. Maybe while i'm not there you can keep them company! I use StumbleUpon fairly frequently, and I have a Facebook that I check every now and then. Therefore, no Facebook no StumbleUpon, and no High Existence. This gives me the reason i've been looking for to distance myself from Facebook but I will miss the conversations that I engage in on High Existence.
My cell phone is my second primary use of electronic technology. I will not be calling anyone nor will I be texting. (except when I tell my girlfriend, Erica, that I've arrived in Charleston to visit her.) Besides Erica, I don't text all that much, and I'm seeing her in two days so that won't be so hard.
I typically read the newspaper but in lieu of this being the "Thoreau Challenge" I have also decided to abstain from the news. I like to keep up with things such as Occupy Wall Street and conflicts overseas but I think to capture the essence of this experiment I don't just want to rid my self of technology but also any external dialogue on matters not pertaining to my own experience.
Predictions: I am actually looking forward to this week. The type of dialogue on High Existence is typically that having an open mind, understanding your consciousness, living healthier (both physically and mentally) etc. This really gives me a chance to step back from what I think about all the time and walk the walk. While I meditate everyday, I also am otherwise moving on to different topics so often that i don't really have time to apply what i'm conversing about and actually experience it. I am hoping to really take some the perspectives i've gained and apply them to real experiences. I have high expectations for this week. I'll keep you informed on how things are going in a few days. Au revoir!
No comments:
Post a Comment