Thinking about it, I would have to say that the vast majority of the hours in most of my days are spent connected to one electronic device or another.
I wake up in the morning and turn off the alarm I’d set the night before on my iPhone,
then reach for my iPad to retrieve my e-mail, scroll through my Facebook feed, and see what’s happened in the world since I last checked in.
After awhile I’ll get up, connect my drained iPad to the charger, and make myself presentable and ready to face the world. I then boot up my laptop while getting coffee and breakfast (which I eat in front of the computer) and plug in my iPhone to top up its juice.
From Tuesday to Friday I also fire up my work laptop and connect to my remote office so I can retrieve and work on files and so that my co-workers in Victoria can reach me by e-mail and Skype. This computer is set to PST (i.e., three hours behind my physical location) so I can see “office time” at a glance without having to do the calculation in my mind (because I prefer to avoid math if at all possible!).
Whenever I leave the house my iPhone is guaranteed to accompany me and be pulled out numerous times so that I can look up some piece of information, check in on Facebook, or see if I’ve received any new e-mail. Depending on where I’m going (and how big the bag I’m carrying) I may also take my iPad, which has both WiFi and 3G connectivity and, if I’m in the mood for writing, a portable keyboard.
If I stay at home for the evening and am not using my laptop, I will always have my iPad and iPhone close at hand… and, while I’m still old-fashioned enough to prefer paper-bound books to their electronic counterpart, I’ve been known to crack open my Kindle now and then if I can’t wait to get my hands on the printed version of the book I’m dying to read.
I blog every day using my laptop and take daily photos with my iPhone. Quite often while I’m tangling, even – a totally unplugged activity! – I’ll be wearing earbuds and listening to an audiobook on my iPhone. (Hooray for multi-tasking!)
At the end of the day I’ll hop into bed and surf the internet for an hour or two on my iPad and then, when my eyes start to close, I’ll set an alarm on my iPhone and disconnect my brain for the night.
Yes, I’d say I’m connected.
And you know what? I love it.
I’ve never felt the need to step back and unplug, to take an internet break, to go off the grid… because my internet connectedness is an integral and much-beloved feature of my day-to-day life. I’d even venture to say that being plugged in is an extension of who I am, a part of how I define myself.
Because I love the internet! The internet is a place to connect with friends and family from around the world who I might not otherwise have the opportunity to see. The internet enables me to work from home, even though my employer is in another part of the country. The internet offers entertainment, information, community. The internet is where I express myself, and learn from others who are doing the same.
Being online is just as important to me as being offline – for me, they’re two halves of the same whole, with plenty of overlap.
So I’m not planning to unplug anytime soon.
How connected are you? How do you feel about it?
Please share!
{ 20 comments… add one }
Very connected as well. So much so, that I “had to” buy a three device portable charger so I didn’t have to worry about sockets.
a.eye recently posted… Sharing Sharolyn’s Joy
Twitter: alphabetsalad
May 3, 2014
LOL, love it! I think I need one of those.
Laurel Regan recently posted… 100 Words: Some Days
I’m using the Powergen
a.eye recently posted… My (no longer) secret love affair
Twitter: alphabetsalad
May 4, 2014
Thank you!
I am glad to hear that you are happily connected. I am, too though not quite as much. I am not working (happily) either.
I get tired of hearing people knocking FB and other social media. It’s great getting to know people on the other side of the world. It’s not the medium that’s at fault but the way we use it.
Lily Leung recently posted… THINKING WARM
Twitter: alphabetsalad
May 3, 2014
I totally agree – it’s all about how we use it!
Laurel Regan recently posted… 100 Words: Some Days
Twitter: ShesAllWrite
May 3, 2014
I work in online marketing, so I am constantly plugged in. I sometimes do feel the need to take a step back to feel present in a given moment, but I’m not one of those people who dramatically announces they are taking an Internet vacation or whatever–as if the Internet will all fall apart without them while they are gone.
Carla Riseman recently posted… My Daughter Is So Over Breastfeeding, But I’m Not
Twitter: alphabetsalad
May 3, 2014
I have run across several of those people in my time online! I’m not one of them either.
Laurel Regan recently posted… 100 Words: Some Days
Twitter: hfert_solutions
May 3, 2014
Oh, I’m very connected… Laptop, android, PS3… I blog daily and Facebook is integral. But, through all that, I do take time to unplug for a few hours a week. I go outside, take a walk, and go people-watching. I love my no-tech moments.
Hillary recently posted… What is a Threatened Miscarriage?
Twitter: alphabetsalad
May 3, 2014
I think it’s all about balance, really. Sounds like you have it!
I too am connected even at work. I do try to make sure I unplug an hour or two to exercise or take some pictures.
Twitter: alphabetsalad
May 4, 2014
Yes, it’s good to be in balance!
Laurel Regan recently posted… Today’s Gratitude List – Linkup No. 28
I’m much more connected than I like to about at times. If I’m notdoing something blog related, which require internet connectivity at the least, then I’m looking something up for myself, reading a book on my Nook, playing a game (phone or computer), or using the computer for some other activity (including Netflix or YouTube). So, I may not be involve with social media as much as others, but I’m still very much connected to my devices. To that end, I, too, enjoy being connected though it’s a bit of a love-hate relationship
Life Breath Present recently posted… My Stove is Deep, What About Yours?
Twitter: alphabetsalad
May 4, 2014
It seems as though being connected is just part of life these days, isn’t it?
Laurel Regan recently posted… Today’s Gratitude List – Linkup No. 28
Great post! I had to think through what I do and you’re right- we are all connected through our devices. I hadn’t thought about how much I should be grateful for that. Virginia- firstclasswoman.com
virginia sullivan recently posted… The Freedom of Rose Colored Glasses
Twitter: alphabetsalad
May 4, 2014
Thanks, Virginia! I’m very grateful to have those connections.
Laurel Regan recently posted… Today’s Gratitude List – Linkup No. 28
Connected, but would like to be less so. I do live on my laptop for writing and work. And I would die … DIE without my ipod nano … but no facebook, and I am working towards getting off twitter, where I never had much to say anyway … I would like to blog a little more, but that is lap top stuff. I don’t have an ipad, or a reader, and my cell is a throwaway … I like being a little more disconnected.
Marika recently posted… Photo Friday – Signs of Summer
Twitter: alphabetsalad
May 4, 2014
No Facebook?! *gasp*
Laurel Regan recently posted… Today’s Gratitude List – Linkup No. 28
Facebook for me was a huge time waster … I went quite a bit of time not knowing what the rest of my high school class was having for lunch, and too much politics and faux rage … it just is not for me, but I’ve always been a bit of a hermit.
Marika recently posted… May the 4th
Twitter: alphabetsalad
May 5, 2014
I have met others who feel the same way about FB! You’re not alone.
Laurel Regan recently posted… Today’s Gratitude List – Linkup No. 28
Trackbacks: