Living in the dark ages (golden era) without technology

[mike]

Here's my story:

I moved into a new apartment last week. I have been calling the cable/internet company trying to get a hook up at the new place for about a week and a half but with no luck so far. Apparently it's due to confusion caused by one of the apartments in the building being illegal or the prior tenant having not canceled their account yet. Whatever the case, I'm without service for the time being, and considering not chasing down the company to take my money.

I've got an iPhone, which for some reason has virtually no reception anywhere near my new place. It had crappy reception in my old apartment, but now it's just an extremely expensive paperweight. I've been on the phone with help lines trying to solve the problem to no avail. So I'm about ready to break the contract and argue my case to them that I shouldn't have to pay the fee that goes along with doing that since they can't provide service where I live.

About a month ago, for no apparent reason all of my phone contacts got deleted from the iPhone, my hard drive and the mobileme server. So I've been living without most of my 300+ contacts for the last month. Which initially drove me up the wall.

Also about a month ago, I decided to delete my myspace page. I just realized it didn't help me in anyway. Honestly, my birthday was coming up and it bugged me to get this wave of birthday wishes from people I don't know or barely keep in touch with. I just felt too old for the website I guess.

So I'm at a crossroads. I think I really like the silence that having a virtually inoperable phone that has no contacts stored in it has brought to my life. I don't have cable. I don't have the internet at home (looking past the iPhone since it won't be with me much longer.) I have a myspace profile for my 30's blues night that I only log in to use strictly as an advertising tool.

I didn't create this situation to mirror a more golden age lifestyle, but I can't help but feel it resembles one anyway. Anyone else take the plunge and unplug from this modern life? How did it help or hinder you? Any unexpected consequences?

 

[Paisley]

I was never plugged in except for Internet service.

You mentioned silence. I don't think you can have a spiritual life without silence. People who strictly observe the Jewish sabbath don't talk on the phone or use the computer on that day. They don't turn on anything electric. I think the idea is to eliminate distractions one day of the week so that there's nothing to drown out your thoughts and feelings.

My cousin Meg, who is a Buddhist, went on a meditation retreat. All day, they meditated. Around day three, people started breaking down and crying from feelings and memories that came up. So did Meg, but she got through it.

My house is usually quiet. I don't talk on the phone constantly and I watch only a few TV programs and movies. Sunday is a day of rest. I can't say I've found the peace of a monk, but my emotional backlog is much smaller than it was before I started unplugging on Sundays.

 

["Skeet" McD]

Here's my story:

I moved into a new apartment last week. I have been calling the cable/internet company trying to get a hook up at the new place for about a week and a half but with no luck so far. Apparently it's due to confusion caused by one of the apartments in the building being illegal or the prior tenant having not canceled their account yet. Whatever the case, I'm without service for the time being, and considering not chasing down the company to take my money.

I've got an iPhone, which for some reason has virtually no reception anywhere near my new place. It had crappy reception in my old apartment, but now it's just an extremely expensive paperweight. I've been on the phone with help lines trying to solve the problem to no avail. So I'm about ready to break the contract and argue my case to them that I shouldn't have to pay the fee that goes along with doing that since they can't provide service where I live.

About a month ago, for no apparent reason all of my phone contacts got deleted from the iPhone, my hard drive and the mobileme server. So I've been living without most of my 300+ contacts for the last month. Which initially drove me up the wall.

Also about a month ago, I decided to delete my myspace page. I just realized it didn't help me in anyway. Honestly, my birthday was coming up and it bugged me to get this wave of birthday wishes from people I don't know or barely keep in touch with. I just felt too old for the website I guess.

So I'm at a crossroads. I think I really like the silence that having a virtually inoperable phone that has no contacts stored in it has brought to my life. I don't have cable. I don't have the internet at home (looking past the iPhone since it won't be with me much longer.) I have a myspace profile for my 30's blues night that I only log in to use strictly as an advertising tool.

I didn't create this situation to mirror a more golden age lifestyle, but I can't help but feel it resembles one anyway. Anyone else take the plunge and unplug from this modern life? How did it help or hinder you? Any unexpected consequences?

Dear Mike,
I didn't do what I did by chance, but by choice...and it was the fulfillment of a childhood dream. I had always been interested in the mid-19C urban Irish poor...and, back in the early 90s, had a chance to rent an apartment on Beacon Hill here in Boston which was for all practical purposes in it's mid-19C state (the apartment, as rented, was the front and back parlor of an early 19C row house--these were already being broken up and rented as apartments in the 1850s--and all the "modern" stuff was in the back parlor. I lived in the front parlor).

It was a remarkable experience. When I moved in, I had a sea chest, a straw-stuffed matress on the floor, and not much else. As I lived there, over 5 years, I added to the furniture. I heated by, and cooked in, the fireplace; I lighted with candle and oil. I showered and washed my dishes with water heated on the hob. I slept on a rope bed, in the fullness of time.

It was wonderful. Take home message: the past was a quiet, and a dark, place. For me, it was 1867...and all the light moved, as did the shadows. There was no radio...there was no sound at all, except what I made...and that was in the middle of a great city. Occasionally a mounted policeman would clop over the cobblestones outside.

The past was both better, and worse, than the modern world; the modern world is both worse and better than the past. If you are drawn to make an experiment of living "in the past" I can guarantee you from personal experience that you will not regret it. Be glad you live in a time when this is a possibility for you!

Let us know what you decide, and how it goes...

"Skeet"

 

[AmateisGal]

When I moved into my apartment seven months ago, I made the conscious decision not to have a television in my living room. I also decided against cable. It was the best decision I ever made.

My daughter has a t.v. in her bedroom so she can watch DVDs and I have a small one also for watching DVDs. But it is not a daily thing. It's mostly on the weekends when I want to relax.

But not being glued to the television is so wonderful. Last night, my daughter and I took a long nature walk along our local walking path. We took pictures and laughed and talked and enjoyed nature. Beats watching t.v. any day!

I like the silence. I'll listen to music occasionally, but more often than not, I'll just open the screen door and listen to nature.

 

[Brooksie]

For almost 8 months I did not have my own CPU or internet however during that time I did have it at work when I used to work that is(the cpu was only used for work purposes except my lunch hour which I would take a walk for the first half hour and the second half would be for eating and spending time here on the FL). Also at that time I did not own a T.V., car or listen to the radio. Also 8 months ago I started to meditate for an hour every night.

So now here are the changes: After I was laid off about 5 months ago I did get a laptop with internet access so the job search would be easier. Instead of going to work I ended up going back to school as a part of a federally funded program, thank God for my laptop and internet because it made my life easier so I did not have to do my homework at the CPU lab or library all of the time. I still do not own a car or listen to the radio but I do love to listen to 20s and 30s jazz and 40s swing through the internet. I recently had to move (money getting tight) and I am now renting a room in a house a few miles out of town in a suburb. There is a T.V. in the house so on a rare occation I watch the food network because my house mate loves it. I still meditate for an hour every night and I go to satsang on Tuesday nights which is a group that meditates together for a little bit of fellowship and spirituality. Oh I almost forgot I do own a cell phone and have for years - I especially because my dad is in very poor health the doctors say he will not live for much longer so I need a phone because my mom and dad live about an hour and 45 min. away by car longer by bus (which is how I go) it is over two hours so I stay in touch about 2 times a week by phone and the phone will come in handy for job search time also. Not many people have my cell number and I do not have a land line so my phone rings next to never - very quiet and peaceful.

Brooksie

 

[LizzieMaine]

I think as technology becomes more and more invasive, we're going to see more and more people doing exactly this, if only to keep some sense that they have control over their environment. We all need to have some point of refuge from the constant din, whatever form that takes.

The only telephones I have are the hard-wired kind, and my number is unlisted. I generally don't give it out to anyone but those who need to have it for work or family reasons -- and that means I can go days without hearing the phone ring. While I'm not quite the dead silent type -- I keep the radio going most of the time, if only to mask the racket coming from the junkyard on the other side of my back fence -- I do everything possible to minimize technological jibber-jabber in my life, and I say more power to anyone else who does so.

 

[Brooksie]

When I moved into my apartment seven months ago, I made the conscious decision not to have a television in my living room. I also decided against cable. It was the best decision I ever made.

My daughter has a t.v. in her bedroom so she can watch DVDs and I have a small one also for watching DVDs. But it is not a daily thing. It's mostly on the weekends when I want to relax.

But not being glued to the television is so wonderful. Last night, my daughter and I took a long nature walk along our local walking path. We took pictures and laughed and talked and enjoyed nature. Beats watching t.v. any day!

I like the silence. I'll listen to music occasionally, but more often than not, I'll just open the screen door and listen to nature.

I have not owned a TV in years and I love it that way. I do not miss it a bit. I am always able to find things to do and I am never bored. The move I recently made however has been taken a little bit of adjustment it is hard to live on your own and then to have to move in with somebody to make ends meet but they say change is good right? So I keep an open mind and know there is a reason why I am here.

Brooksie

 

[Brooksie]

I think as technology becomes more and more invasive, we're going to see more and more people doing exactly this, if only to keep some sense that they have control over their environment. We all need to have some point of refuge from the constant din, whatever form that takes.

The only telephones I have are the hard-wired kind, and my number is unlisted. I generally don't give it out to anyone but those who need to have it for work or family reasons -- and that means I can go days without hearing the phone ring. While I'm not quite the dead silent type -- I keep the radio going most of the time, if only to mask the racket coming from the junkyard on the other side of my back fence -- I do everything possible to minimize technological jibber-jabber in my life, and I say more power to anyone else who does so.

My phone will also go for days with out ringing and everytime I see someone with a cell phone attached to their head complaining about how they wish is would stop ringing that is right about the time that I am thankful I have a cell phone to be able to contact my parents and visa versa but I am really thankful that it is not attached to my ear all day and rarely rings.

Brooksie

 

[Sertsa]

A few years ago I had to live without a lot of connected technology for a few months, since I had to do a five-month hospital stint. At first it was a pain, but it got me to evaluate some things. It was also interesting to realize who noticed I had been missing for a while, and who didn't. (I didn't tell a lot of people what was going on. It seemed odd to call up someone and say, "How are you? ... I'm good. Well, not really. I'm in the hospital. Nah, it's not like I'm dying or anything. Well, actually they think I might be, but I'll be fine...")

I've always tried to keep technology and life at a balance and not get too lost in them, especially after that. I don't use MySpace, but Facebook is great, since I've been able to reconnect with quite a few people, some of which I'd missed quite a bit. (I avoid just adding people for the sake of adding people, however).

I also don't watch much TV, either, and I make sure I remember that I have a lot of books and a few musical instruments around. And, every so often, I wonder if maybe I should write an actual letter, but then I realize how seldom I take down someone's actual address anymore.

 

[Brooksie]

Oh books don't get me started on books! I have 4 large rubber maid containers filled with them and I read about a book a week. As far as letter writing goes now with new technology it has become a lost art.

Brooksie

 

[Brooksie]

Also Sertsa I hope you get to feeling better soon.

Brooksie

 

[docneg]

I haven't had TV service for seven or eight years; even longer since I've subscribed to newspapers. And I don't listen to the radio. I'm a lot happier than I used to be. And it isn't due to any retro compulsion. I simply became determined to severely limit the opportunities to be lied to. That absolutely has to start with the media.

 

[Brooksie]

The last time I had a subscription to the paper was about in 2000 and I refuse to watch the news.

Brooksie

 

[docneg]

The last time I had a subscription to the paper was about in 2000 and I refuse to watch the news.

My hat's off to you.

 

[Brooksie]

My hat's off to you.

...

 

[Lady Day]

I use to work with technology all the time, and you do get sick of it. I find the key is selecting what modern convinces work best for you.

I haven't had a tv for 5 years (thanks to tv turn off week). When Im at someone's house, and they have the boob tube on, I see what I haven't missed. My main reason for getting rid of it, was the ads I was bombarded with all the time.

There isnt anything that isnt relatively at my fingertips via the internet. I have to have it, most of my work is freelance, and its with people around the country/world so there you go. Its the bulk of my modern living, and thats fine. I can get most of what I need from this one portal.

Cable, whatever! Ill just watch said tv show a day later on the network's website for free.

My new place is noisy (VERY hard to just sit and read a book) :rage: , and I have good hearing, so Im always wearing my headphones (not by choice). My phone barely rings (I hate the phone with a passion) so often the battery runs down. I keep contacts and only correspond with people I hear from at least once every 6 months. All the 'social networking' sites can kiss my....

I do like my microwave, though. Its nice especially if you live alone.

We are constantly told that all this stuff makes our lives easier, but we are always trying to find ways to make this stuff fit into our lives. Thats whats so exhausting, especially if it does not fit to begin with.

LD

 

[J. M. Stovall]

Last fall when Hurricane Ike hit Houston we lost our power for 10 days. We had to go and get ice for the coolers, use lanterns and such, but we really bonded with our friends. We cleared the trash and limbs and helped each other. And the funny thing was I was actually enjoying it towards the end. When the power came back on I was a little sad and everyone thought I was crazy.

 

[Sertsa]

Also Sertsa I hope you get to feeling better soon.

Brooksie

Thanks, Brooksie! I got out of the hospital about three years ago, though. I'm actually amazingly good now.

I used to read about a book a week, too. I miss that; I now read and edit most of my workdays, so I haven't been reading as much when I get home. I feel guilty.


Back to TV, a lot of people couldn't believe I went through all of college without it, and how seldom I watch it now. When I do, there's not a lot that holds interest past some very long commercial breaks, unless I'm writing something on my laptop and, say, the History channel or a baseball game is on.

 

[59Lark]

so you want live amish?`

Having grown up with wood stoves and freezing cold houses, water on the nightstand would freeze over night. The getting out of bed and down to the kitchen was a mad dash. The one hour of televsion on the old spartan was a treat. The few here that relish in the peace and silence and the true being sound like loners and single people too the most part. Having children and one that has asbergers there isnt much silence and there isnt much peace. Now also could you folks that relish your peace and sanity stand having other people around all the time, ie a relationship because most folks arent quiet and like a lack of techonolgy. I have become dependent of tv too relax what broken nerves that i do have. The tcm and amc, and a few shows like ncis, diners dives and dashes on the food network make me happy. I spend a lot of time in the kitchen making meals, my eldest daughter is finally taking some of this over, and doing dishes. So a tv in the kitchen make this ordeal bearable and i also sit out here in the dining room in my jamas punching on this pc writing this e mail sipping my coffe and watching our new lab so she wont whine in the cage. IN my window less workshop and dank dark basement the chatter of the tv is the only company that i have quite often and i leave it on for background but will leave the oldies radio station on sometimes instead. But i dont have text mex is that a gadget or a meal, and i dont use my cell phone much more for my wife too find me. And i dont have a face book or whatever that is.. i would love more peace and quite but it aint gonna happen anytime soon. 59LARK.

 

[Brooksie]

Having grown up with wood stoves and freezing cold houses, water on the nightstand would freeze over night. The getting out of bed and down to the kitchen was a mad dash. The one hour of televsion on the old spartan was a treat. The few here that relish in the peace and silence and the true being sound like loners and single people too the most part. Having children and one that has asbergers there isnt much silence and there isnt much peace. Now also could you folks that relish your peace and sanity stand having other people around all the time, ie a relationship because most folks arent quiet and like a lack of techonolgy. I have become dependent of tv too relax what broken nerves that i do have. The tcm and amc, and a few shows like ncis, diners dives and dashes on the food network make me happy. I spend a lot of time in the kitchen making meals, my eldest daughter is finally taking some of this over, and doing dishes. So a tv in the kitchen make this ordeal bearable and i also sit out here in the dining room in my jamas punching on this pc writing this e mail sipping my coffe and watching our new lab so she wont whine in the cage. IN my window less workshop and dank dark basement the chatter of the tv is the only company that i have quite often and i leave it on for background but will leave the oldies radio station on sometimes instead. But i dont have text mex is that a gadget or a meal, and i dont use my cell phone much more for my wife too find me. And i dont have a face book or whatever that is.. i would love more peace and quite but it aint gonna happen anytime soon. 59LARK.

Well I have no desire to live like the Amish do and yes I can be in a relationship and have someone around all of the time... I was married for 8 years and I did not get a divorce because I could not stand having him around it was for other issues.

I was not in anyway trying to dis people that watch t.v. I just personally do not like it.

I do like my peace and I am not anti-social or a loner, and at this point I have a housemate.

I think I like peace and quiet so much because when I was growing my mom and dad constantly yelled at each other all of the time. I grew up with three older brothers and there were always people at our house non stop, friends, relatives and neighbors. Everybody was like Kramer on Sienfeld - nobody would ever knock-they would just come on in like they owned the place. Plus almost all of my relationships have been quite tumultuous.

As far as texting goes - I have tried it a few times and I can never really get the hang of it so I have made it so I am not able to give or receive texts which is good because I used to have few people who use to text me and I could never text back so I took care of that one.

Brooksie