So one of the hard things to do these days is to “escape” from technology. When we do things like go exploring we have our phone GPS and there are very few places you can truly escape to a dead zone anymore. The thing is, you still can make a choice whether to utilize the technology you have or not. I decided to test this by going tent camping for Memorial Day weekend while avoiding being “connected” but still utilizing technology.
For this adventure, I had to make a 5 hour drive to my camp site all the way across the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. For this adventure, I had downloaded podcasts, set up playlists for music, and was ready to head out. I had my dogs in the backseat and a car full of camping gear. I was going to challenge myself to stay disconnect (for the most part) and see how I would react for this 3 day weekend. If anyone knows me, I have a device for everything. I am connected 24/7 and the digital king. So how was I going to deal with this? Was I going to “survive”?
Most people ask why I would even try this. Honestly, I was starting to feel device burnout. Being in front of a computer all day at work and having all hobbies that include spending some time in front of the computer, I really needed this experience.
So when I got to the campsite, I had full LTE bars and could basically do anything digital I wanted. However, I turned my phone on airplane mode and decided to stick true to my plan. Since I had already downloaded music I was good to go. I like to always have music and it made the trip nice and relaxing. No staring at screens. Just jamming to music. I did take my Apple Watch to track my steps when hiking and keep track of things like my heart rate and directions, but I didn’t feel “connected.” It was the right amount of electronics to heighten my experience, not hinder it. I even forgot my phone in my car during a hike at a waterfall and didn’t miss it.
Could this be a new side to the tech/gadget guy? What will Jeremiah do next? Will he give up his iPad? Find out next week, same tech time, same tech channel.
