10 days unplugged...what did I learn?

[BanjoBen]

I went back to the Texas farm a couple weeks ago. At the time, my mind was fried. I had not taken a day off (like, completely off) since Christmas and I was near burnout. For 10 days, I turned off the phone and stayed off social media (I did have to run payroll toward the end and coordinate my trip back to TN, but otherwise I was unplugged). I want to thank my team for allowing me to take this needed break, and I want to thank the forum admins for doing such a great job in my stead, as they always do.

So what did I learn after 10 days of no phone or social media? I learned I wish I didn’t have a phone or social media But other than that, I learned much much more. I plan to write a series of essays about what the Lord showed/taught me. I have much to repent from and much good work and habits to pursue. Here is a brief list of some things I learned:

1. Technology has greatly affected my mental acuity, awareness, and being present.
2. My work had become inefficient because when tasks got difficult, I would escape to easier options (like checking facebook, credit card statements, etc.). I could always justify those escapes, but actually I believe they were/are sinful and rooted in pride, etc, not to mention a poor stewarding of the brain/time the Lord has given me.
3. Closely related, technology created physiological habits and behaviors that fueled the distraction. For instance, it took around 5 days with no phone to get out of the habit of pulling my phone out of my pocket as soon as I exited a vehicle (which would then take me down a rabbit hole of emails/texts/etc.). I experienced phantom buzzes in my pocket where my phone used to be carried.
4. Technology and social media has harmed my relationships, not helped them. The tech that might have been meant for convenience has driven a wedge. You can’t hear someone’s inflection in a text message. You can’t hear their emotion in a facebook comment. When our comms are shortened, abbreviated, and void of actual words, we miss out on relational connection. The shortened communication doesn’t give opportunity to the “how’s your mama doing” question at the end of conversations. Over time, I’ve gotten to know my friends and family less, not more. This must change.
5. I had stopped learning. I knew I was reading less, but didn’t realize how much. Over the break I read books on WW2, B17s, worldview/culture, and psychology. I am smarter and more aware than I was 2 weeks ago. If I had my phone and social media, I would not be.

Overall, technology and social media has worked to cause me to love my brother less, not more. It has made me less of a man, not more. It has made me more ordinary, not extraordinary. To be clear, this is my fault for allowing it to do this. However, I’ve resolved to place those things where they belong, and that journey began this week. Already, I can tell a difference. To be continued…

[Simone]

All that is exactly true. Sign of the times I guess. Remember when you left the house pre tech Era and it was simply that your were ‘not available’. I miss those days. It’s also the reason why we frequently go camping in areas with no cell signal… time to reconnect with life! Appreciation for all that you do, and happy you were able to unplug & reap its benefits !

[BanJoe]

Before you re-invent the wheel, you might want to read “The Age of Missing Information” by Bill McKibben.

The Age of Missing Information

“Imagine watching an entire day’s worth of television on every single channel. Acclaimed environmental writer and culture critic Bill McKibben subjected himself to this sensory overload in an experiment to verify whether we are truly better informed than previous generations. Bombarded with newscasts and fluff pieces, game shows and talk shows, ads and infomercials, televangelist pleas and Brady Bunch episodes, McKibben processed twenty-four hours of programming on all ninety-three Fairfax, Virginia, cable stations. Then, as a counterpoint, he spent a day atop a quiet and remote mountain in the Adirondacks, exploring the unmediated man and making small yet vital discoveries about himself and the world around him. As relevant now as it was when originally written in 1992–and with new material from the author on the impact of the Internet age–this witty and astute book is certain to change the way you look at television and perceive media as a whole.”

“Do yourself a favor: Put down the remote and pick up this book.”
–Houston Chronicle

I read it back in the '90’s and the observations ring true today. We get all this information, but gain very little knowledge.

Enjoy your quest!

BTW- Does this we’re not going to see a new website?

[Mike_R]

rooted in pride

I am re-reading CS Lewis’ “Mere Christianity” and last night finished the chapter on pride. People tend to think of pride as being other people’s problems and less bad than some forms of sin, but I am convinced it is near universal and my most serious/fundamental issue. If we rightfully view how much greater God is than the BEST of mankind, but yet how He still loves me more than I can imagine (or am capable of loving), only in that moment do I start to set my priorities and choices correctly. Blessings to you on this life long journey. Simply recognizing that pride is an issue is further than many folks ever get.

You can’t hear someone’s inflection in a text message.

Let’s go eat grandma!

[BanJoe]

CS Lewis’ “Mere Christianity”

Great read! When you’re finished, take a look at the man that inspired C. S. Lewis & read “The Everlasting Man” by G.K. Chesterton.

Here are two nuggets:
“Pessimism is not in being tired of evil but in being tired of good. Despair does not lie in being weary of suffering, but in being weary of joy. It is when for some reason or other good things in a society no longer work that the society begins to decline; when its food does not feed, when its cures do not cure, when its blessings refuse to bless.”

“If there is one fact we really can prove, from the history that we really do know, it is that despotism can be a development, often a late development and very often indeed the end of societies that have been highly democratic. A despotism may almost be defined as a tired democracy. As fatigue falls on a community, the citizens are less inclined for that eternal vigilance which has truly been called the price of liberty; and they prefer to arm only one single sentinel to watch the city while they sleep.”

And just for fun:

“The problem of disbelieving in God is not that a man ends up believing nothing. Alas, it is much worse. He ends up believing anything.”
Gilbert K. Chesterton

[Grinnin]

Ya know @BanjoBen You are most certainly correct!!! Something I really haven’t thought about in a while. My son is 26 years old. I remember he wanted a cell phone Sooooo bad. He got one when he was about, oh 7th or 8th grade. I remember the terrible effect it had on relationships. I remember discussing with my wife, ya know, growing up is a lot rougher now than it used to be. I remember commenting on how if he didn’t answer a text, or a call from his friends it was, oh, he must be mad at me or he is avoiding me, or something stupid like that. You couldn’t go on a vacation or spend time with family without offending someone. That is one reason why “this”, the banjoben site is the only social media I have, I don’t have instagram or divorcebook, for a reason. I want to be disconnected to a certain extent.
Thanks for affirming my belief that social media, while it can be a useful tool, can also just as easily be the downfall of society if not managed correctly.

[KevinB]

Let’s go eat grandma!

Let’s go eat, grandma!

Punctuation saves lives!

[Scot]

I’d be happy to have you swing by anytime if you’d prefer to do my mandolin lessons in person.

[AnotherEric]

I’ll apologize in advance for raving on a bit – but this is a subject near and dear, so please indulge me.

Several years ago, I began contemplating how accurate the concept of “life always gets better” truly is. What do I mean by “life” in this context? I mean that it is generally better for a given person (probably easiest to say a middle aged American citizen, as that’s the closest to what I know about) to be alive today versus the past.

On the surface, it seemed pretty easy for me to convince myself of this. I would certainly prefer to be alive today versus 100 years ago. I am easily convinced by one word – “dentistry” (there’s a joke in there).

By many standards (economic, nutritional, spare time), life has improved greatly when looked at from afar (in 100+ year doses). My grandparents legitimately spent many years starving. My father’s diet in the 40’s likely led to his cancer. I have never gone hungry and my kids will likely live their days with more calories and spare time than all but the wealthiest from my grandparents’ era.

That said, several years ago, I began wondering (i) is it fair to consider this improvement to be a linear staircase and (ii) is there something somewhere that says it has to keep getting better permanently?

In respect of (i), if we look back at history, there were certainly periods where things got a lot worse before better. Clearly the 1920’s were better than the 1930’s for many in the US. Depending on who you were, the 40’s were worse than the 30’s. This pattern of ups and downs continued. Wars, population dislocation, poverty, pollution and job displacement have and continue to create a lot of misfortune (not to mention chronic drug issues, violence and homelessness). There is nothing that mandates that this year must be better than the last for all and everyone.

This brings me to (ii). If we assume that things aren’t always getting better, then the alternative is they are becoming more challenging. The movie, The Matrix, was released in 1999 and references 1999 as the peak of human civilization. Amusingly, this was before social media and widespread use of the internet displaced so much of our economy. There is a strong argument that our advances post '99 have been a net negative, when considering a great deal of the chaos arising from social media.

In many respects, we’ve used social media (and the internet broadly) to replace such meaningful and important aspects of normal life. As a parent, it’s virtually impossible to keep your children away/off of these channels of interaction, but we have no idea how complex their harm will be.

I once read that no one every broadly publicizes their bad times – it’s always them looking their best and doing their best. While this is wonderful for grandparents, this can be very challenging for younger minds. If we’re having a hard day, it’s not that easy to see (and imagine) everyone around us “living their best lives.”

OK I’ve said enough for now – thanks for indulging me!

[Mike_R]

Eric, I wish things were such that I could argue, but nothing comes to mind.

[BanJoe]

You really should read “The Age of Missing Information.” One point it makes it that “we live in a period of great change.” Everyone seems to accept this as true, but upon closer examination you gotta wonder. Here’s the example the author uses:

Imagine you had a time machine and went back 50 years. Welcome to 1972. You could walk into any kitchen in America and make breakfast.
Go back another 50 years, to 1922. Walk into an American kitchen and you would have no idea how to make breakfast. Great big old cast iron cook stove that used coal or wood for fuel and no knobs to turn.
HOw about communications? The degree of change from no phone to a crank up “Hello Sadie?” phone instantly changed your life. All of a sudden you could talk to people around the world! Going from a “Hello Sadie?” to a princess phone doesn’t change things much. You can still talk to people around the world. Move from a princess phone to a cell phone and not much has changed. You can still talk to people around the world. Upgrade to the internet & you can still talk to people around the world. Get a smart phone and now you can text people around the world. But typing out letters on your smart phone to send a written message ain’t a whole lot different from sending a telegram.
It’s not the information we get that’s important. It’s the information we do not get that we really need, like “How do I live side-by-side with people who don’t like bluegrass music?”
But we’re constantly told we live in a time of great change and the stuff you have is obsolete so you better buy new stuff. Apparently, Stuff is what life is all about.
Remember when “The customer is always right?” Nobody is a customer any longer. Now we are “consumers!” Is the consumer ever right? No, because we live in an age of great change.

[ScubaNut2014]

Thanks for sharing this, Ben. You have a lot to be thankful for and as a result, through your sharing, caring and outreach we all have a lot to be thankful for in our musical and, for some, our Christian journey. You certainly have brought a LOT to the world of bluegrass and those of us who just wanna learn how to play it or how to play it better. At the same time you present a great role model as a brother, husband, father, church member, citizen, etc. I pray that these lessons you have learned enrich you and at the same time I look forward to a long journey with you in my musical adventure. Granted, I have a lot more birthdays behind me than you do but I am not worried…God has granted me good health (just came through a cancer scare that ended up showing no cancer present) and a comfortable life. I’m hoping I can take the lessons you shared from your time unplugged plus the other lessons you share on the website to help me be a better person, a better Christian and (now this’ll be a miracle) a better mandolin picker. Keep it up…and take a break whenever you need! We all love you, Brother!

[Bhive]

This deserves a bump!