Finding respite in the 21st century

Posted on August 18, 2013

Dissecting disconnection: Why I’m taking the week off tech.

Monica Guzman, Seattle Times writer and blogger, is going off the technical grid for a week – thus the article attached above wherein she analyzes our habits and impulses when it comes to us feeling the need to be instantaneously on top of matters.  She’s not disconnecting from all technologies – she intends to watch television and might use a real camera – but she’s staying away from “the ones that know me.”

Ah, respite – what a delightful concept.  Lots of us Baby Boomers equate respite to receiving some sort of relief from our caregiving tasks.  For example, we might be taking care of a parent, sibling, partner, or spouse and we look for every opportunity for a reprieve from our caregiving chores – or at least we should be.  Please see my article Caregiver: put on your oxygen mask first.

Respite, however, also relates to resisting the compulsion to send someone a Happy Birthday greeting by sending an e-mail, or going to the honoree’s Facebook page, or sending a Tweet on the person’s Twitter feed – and instead, deciding to call that person for a conversation that lasts longer than it takes to type a 140 character greeting.  OMG, MIK?  (Oh my god, am I kidding?)

No – I’m serious.  I could make it harder on you – and myself – by suggesting that we send a birthday card that would require us to purchase, write, post, and drop the card through the slot of a postal box.  I think that would be a great idea, mind you, but that’s not what I’m proposing.

Rejoice in the fact that Facebook reminded you of that person’s birthday.  (I know that you received sufficient notice not to miss that person’s birthday because truth be told – that’s how I remember many of my acquaintances’ birthdays each year.)  But please resist the urge to send an instantaneous electronic greeting.  Think of yourself – I know you can – and think of what it feels like to receive fun mail, such as a birthday card, or simply a “there’s no reason for this card” card.  You liked that feeling – didn’t you?  Now I want you to also think about how it feels when someone calls you to personally wish you happiness – just you and the person that called you.  That’s a one-on-one attention connection.

Drop a note, make a call, but leave the 140 characters for some other important message, like:

I had a glazed doughnut and a cup of coffee for breakfast then washed my hair and can’t do a thing with it! Isn’t that just the worst thing ever?

Go ahead and count – there’s 140 characters there.