Less Clutter,Few Gadgets,and Living in the Moment

It's become increasingly difficult finding balance in a system promoting dualism. As would be expected people's mindsets are becoming more rigid. The liberals are getting loonier and the conservatives are getting kookier. This particular presidential race is the most entertaining circus of all. Then again it's all a horse and pony show and whoever "wins" we're all losers. I don't get all bent out of shape about since I know it's a total sham.

To my buddies who might've called and wondered why it takes me awhile to respond - my phone's service is Wi-Fi only and since I'm transitioning into more of a minimalist (within the grid and outside of it) it ranges from several hours to a few days before I'm able to check messages and call back. Don't take offense. The internet is fun but I'm no one's (or no thing's) tool.

Perhaps being suspended from work (for bogus reasons) for two weeks plays a role but if so it's minimal. I was already downsizing before then and my craving for less gadgets and other distractions has been growing. The statement less is more is true. .I'll probably continue to look for ways to de-clutter. I long since uploaded my music to the cloud and most of my movies have been converted to digital files and are stored on external hard drives.

 All this is somehow connected to my observation of others (and myself) becoming more distracted and less focused on the moment. I first noticed it around the fall of 2002 when cell phone usage became the norm. It annoyed me to be out in public when I was hanging out with acquaintances and their phones would ring and they'd start chatting away. It was seen as rude back then and no one was under any illusions about it. As time went on it became the norm and now no one thinks anything of it.

I've noticed the amount of people that hang out at coffee shops and book stores has been steadily declining for about a decade. The economy hasn't been stable for years but I know that's not the reason. People prefer the virtual world over the here and now and to say it's disturbing is an understatement. People's attention spans are waning. I know mine has and I've never been known for being someone that could focus for long bouts of time. I was diagnosed with ADHD as a child if that means anything. Some people think this diagnosis is a myth and it wouldn't surprise me if it is but I can't help but to think there's some truth to it - although it's severity is probably exaggerated. I notice when I eat healthier for long periods of time with plenty of intake of fish oil,ginkgo biloba,and with regular exercise I feel more focused.

On one hand hand it saddens me that there's less people to hang out with but on the other hand it's liberating. It's like there's no more excuses to keep distracting myself with music,activities,and whatever else. I periodically reactivate my social networking profile and it serves as a reminder of why I left it to begin with. It's a time waster - keeping one from getting out and living a real life. I'd rather be lonely traveling about here and there than "socializing" for hours on end on social media. I prefer the old days of the internet when people communicated via email, message boards,or chat rooms and used the internet for a group meet up. It was straight to the point without all the unnecessary bells and whistles. We're overstimed. Distractions. Distractions. Distractions. People will do what they're going to do but for me - keeping it simple is what I prefer.



So I guess it's safe to say that my leave of absence from blogging has finally come to an end (for the time being). Hopefully I'll resume regular postings from here on out. That's the plan anyhow. So until next time - bye bye.