Unplug Me

I went to a party not too long ago and my friends and I were more engaged with what we were doing on our cellphones than with each other's company. It made me sad to think that we were not sharing funny stories with each other or dancing to the music.  One of my friends was buying shoes online and I was making plans to hang out with another friend the next day.  Of course when I met with that friend, we were on our phones for part of the time making other plans.  At the same time, I know that cellphones and the internet have been extremely convenient and beneficial in my life in many ways.  For example, I hardly ever get lost when I'm driving to obscure vegan restaurants and I've had to call AAA when my car battery was dead.  Even though, I don't have a smart phone because I don't want to constantly check my facebook or gmail account, I'm a little overwhelmed with how much texting I do each day and how much I'm on the internet at home and at work.

What does this have to do with the Peace Corps?  I'm glad that you asked, actually.  Well, I'm actually looking forward to getting away from constantly being fed what basketball team won the championship, new ideas of how America is going to get out of debt, and who Kim Kardashian is doing this month.  From what I hear, I will probably receive only intermittent internet access in Mozambique.   I would love to have profound conversations with people in my host community and perhaps play scrabble or soccer with them.  For the last three years in graduate school, I've been occupied writing protracted essays and working with clients.  I live only 10 minutes away from the Pacific Ocean and I hardly ever go to the beach and just enjoy the moment.

I read an interesting article published in the New York Times entitled, The Joy of Quiet, and it explores how many people are actually paying beaucoup bucks to go to "black-hole resorts" where there is no internet access in the hotels so that they can get away from the phone calls, the text messages, and news updates.  Further, I found it disturbing that the article stated that the average American spends at least 8.5 hours in front of a screen and sends about 75 text messages a day.  I don't have a television but I do watch some of my favorite programs and movies online and on some days, I can easily spend eight hours on my computer.

Even though I kind of look forward to having intermittent access to the worldwide web, I wonder if I'll get bored or will I find creative ways to occupy my downtime?  Maybe a little bit of both.  I guess you'll have to tune in to see how I'll plug and unplug my lifeline to the worldwide web in Mozambique.