Is it me or does life seem to be speeding up? Every year, month, week, day, hours – even minutes – feel as though they are just flying by.
Because of this warp speed feeling, I've recently been making a concerted effort each day to live an analog life and unplug from technology. Some days I am more successful than others. It is cliche with my generation (Gen X) to speak of days when we would go out and play until the street lights came on, and most of the time our parents had no clue where we were or what we were doing. Landlines, VCRs, cassette tapes, records, film cameras; almost nothing in our lives was digital. Nowadays I work for a digital media company. In our family we have two cell phones, two laptops, two iPads, two iPods, a Smart TV, smart appliances, digital alarm systems, etc. We are all connected, all the time, and can locate our loved ones within seconds. This technology will only continue to evolve. Who knows - my kids generation could have RFD chips implanted into their bodies and we will all be human computers. It seems like something straight out of a science fiction novel but it's the reality of the world we're living in today. It can be overwhelming. (Think I'm paranoid? Feel free to read this article to help the hairs stand up on the back of your neck.) As an adult I understand the crutch that technology has become for my wife and me, as well as for our kids. It is hard to imagine a day without internet, power, or a phone to pacify my children when we're in pubic and they're being little PITAs. I am one of the fortunate ones who still gets to just unplug a few weekends each year. The reason I try to force myself out of the digital world as much as possible is for my own sanity. Ever find yourself sitting and talking with someone, and all of a sudden you are unengaged in the conversation and scrolling through your phone. Happens to me unconsciously every day. My wife is constantly calling me out on my cell phone use, and for that I love her. She can call me on my own bullshit when I attempt to justify why “I have to check my phone.” Sometimes I find I have too much swirling in my head to meditate or work on controlled breathing, or just focus on a single task or idea. Much of this mental chaos, I think, comes from the amount of information we now have at our fingertips. Our world is the most technologically advanced society in the history of humans. Just think about that for a second, we live in pretty cool times. In addition, most of this technology advancement has come in the past 100 years...CRAZY! Here is what I do to calm the storm on a daily basis. (I also make a point of taking a long weekend once a year in an area where cell phones don’t even work. Yes, those places do still exist.)According to the Centers for Disease Control, these are the leading causes of death for infants and preschoolers. Awareness is key
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