I spend most of my day in front of the computer, inextricable tied to the online world. If I don't hear that I've received a personal email from the ping sound my computer makes, my iphone tells me; if I'm not following a link in an email to an article or video or website, I am using social media to spread the word about a book campaign I'm working on; and now that I'm blogging, when I'm away from the computer I'm moving through the world thinking about what to blog about next.
Many days, the thing I dream about (besides traveling and new shoes) most is escaping the computer. Getting away from the incessant updates and newly hatched information. Thinking about it, I get all excited about all the things I could accomplish offline.
That's why I love this article in Slate by James Sturm about quitting the internet. Here is a snippet, but, really, you should follow the link and read the whole thing...
Over the last several years, the Internet has evolved from being a distraction to something that feels more sinister. Even when I am away from the computer I am aware that I AM AWAY FROM MY COMPUTER and am scheming about how to GET BACK ON THE COMPUTER. I've tried various strategies to limit my time online: leaving my laptop at my studio when I go home, leaving it at home when I go to my studio, a Saturday moratorium on usage. But nothing has worked for long. More and more hours of my life evaporate in front of YouTube. Supposedly addiction isn't a moral failing, but it feels as if it is.
(via Kottke; illustrations by James Sturm)
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