Tech-sodus

My Personal Exodus From Tech-Addiction

Recommended song while reading this post. Shinehead - Gimme No Crack

Tech is fucking up my memory, my eyesight, my sense of direction, my social skills, my natural instincts, and probably a million other things I’m unaware of. I’ve decided to try and ditch it, mainly because I feel like a junkie.

I’m not sure when it happened but what difference? I’m a daily user. An hourly user. I’m using it right now.

Drastic measures are required and I’m going to try and wean myself off where ever I can - a Tech-sodus, beginning with baby steps.

I’m told the first step to recovery is recognizing I’m an addict.

So, baby step one: Confession—how I got here.

My addiction didn’t happen overnight. It grew in stages. I started off a casual user, positive I could quit any time.

Stage 1 – The Casual User

Stationery? Ditched it.

Typewriter? Ditched it.

Carbon paper? Ditched it.

Envelopes? Ditched ‘em.

Stamps? Ditched ‘em.

I was a mountain crunchy granola hippie-type with a non-traditional job, and nothing could suck me in. But then…

Stage 2 The Abuser

Atlas? Ditched it.

Compass? Ditched it.

Map? Ditched it.

Dictionary? Ditched it.

Address book? Ditched it.

As long as I was screaming at my kids to get off their screens, I was no addict.

I moved to the city.

Stage 3 The Tolerator

File cabinets? Ditched ‘em.

Alarm clocks? Ditched ‘em.

Watches? Ditched ‘em.

CDs? Ditched ‘em.

DVDs? Ditched ‘em.

Tapes? Ditched ‘em.

Magazines? Ditched ‘em.

Board games? Ditched ‘em.

TVs? Ditched em.

I had found my crack community but by now I suspected I might have a bigger problem on my hands.

Stage 4 The Dependent

Land lines? Ditched ‘em.

Calendars? Ditched ‘em.

Planners? Ditched ‘em.

Note cards? Ditched ‘em.

Cameras? Ditched ‘em.

Photo albums? Ditched ‘em.

Camcorders? Ditched ‘em.

Sure, I was hooked, but who wasn’t?

And like Stepford Wives, everyone had become a pusher.

Stage 5 The Addict

I used to read more. I used to find my way without directions. I used to have a phenomenal memory. I still know all of my childhood phone numbers, including my father’s business phone number which I haven’t called in forty years.

If I didn’t put it in a device, it’s still stored in my brain. But everything else?

Old files? Stuck in ancient hard drives.

Old photos? Buried in the cloud.

General knowledge seems trapped in my phone.

So, who’s the sucka now?

Me.

And there’s nothing left to ditch.

Except tech.

I suspect it won’t be easy but it’s worth a shot. So, this is the first of several posts to see what happens as I slowly cut down on technology.

Next time, I’ll be trying to ditch my Notes app and going back to physical note books. Tech-sodus, here I come.

Maybe.