Loving the Chaos

Unplugged used to mean listening to Eric Clapton playing an acoustic guitar without the benefit of an amp. Now it applies to a new movement called secular sabbaths - a day devoted to unplugging yourself from any form of technology.Recently New York Times journalist Mark Bittman chronicled his attempt at connecting to himself rather than his computer.  Although skeptical at first, he actually found some benefits in disconnecting for 24 hours.

I remember thinking that the debit card idea would never catch on.

Okay I’m seriously dating myself but twenty-five years ago, mainstream technology only showed up in sci fi movies. Now it is literally impossible to walk down the street without seeing people with something plugged into their ears or fingers frantically tapping out a message on a miniscule keyboard.

Last month the deputy minister of the Canadian department of Citizenship & Immigration sent a memo to employees requesting them to implement a Blackberry blackout between 7 pm and 7 am and on weekends and holidays.

I wonder how that’s going.

Most people I know get a little twitchy at the thought of not being available and in touch at all hours of the day and night. They are afraid of what they might miss or that some how they will be seriously out of the loop.

Here’s a thought:

What might you be missing if you don’t unplug for a day?

How out of the loop are you with yourself when you don’t take time to have a little silence?

Before you know it we’ll all have little microchips in our heads that let us stay plugged in 24/7. So go ahead and unplug. The idea of taking a secular sabbath - completely disconnecting from cell phones, TV, Ipods, computers and anything else with a cord - is worth a try.

How disconnected are you from yourself?