This voiceover was done in one take with all imperfections included - so you may hear some background noise or me stumbling over my words.
Hey there! It’s been awhile. Life has been busy but I’m happy to be back in this space!
First thing’s first, I have an update on the Green Web Design Course - it is now OPEN! Everything is transferred over to it’s brand new platform, Thinkific. There’s now an attached community making it all so much easier to access. And, all videos are up to date with captions and transcripts!
And to celebrate it’s reopening, it’s currently $50 off making the total investment $250 (usual price is $300). It will be on sale through April 30th so take some time to think it over if you’d like.
Would love to see you in there!
Now the real reason I’m writing to you today: how I’ve been detaching from the digital world.
I’ve been phasing a lot of screen time and technology-oriented things out of my life. It’s made me happier, calmer, and more at peace in general. It hasn’t been easy by any means. It’s required work, creativity, and accepting the fact people will think I live under a rock.
Putting phones away or even switching to a non-smart phone seems to be the hip new thing. I did a lot of reflecting on if I could switch away from a smart phone but came to the conclusion that I cannot because I need GPS as I’m horrible with directions and I need messaging apps or I will never talk to anyone again, which isn’t great either.
But, I’ve realized a limited-tech life is possible. And not only possible but fun and more grounding. So I thought I’d document some of the habits I’ve adopted to put my phone down and reconnect with the world in case any of you out there are looking to do similar things!
The problem
In the era of smart phones, anything you could possibly want to know is at your fingertips:
What does the word limned mean? Google it and close some ads on the way.
What are good plants to grow in my garden in Wisconsin? Google it and sift through recommendations from people that clearly are talking about Florida but for some reason it came up in your search.
A new recipe for fried rice? Google it and then watch a video of someone else making it, go down a whole rabbit-hole of videos, and order takeout instead because somehow 3 hours just went by.
Nothing’s ever as simple as it should be when it comes to picking up your phone or computer. It’s a dark pit of distraction and despair.
Some might argue it’s a matter of self control. I argue that social media and tech companies are smarter than any of us will ever be and know exactly how to hook us. They’re like businesses masquerading as drug dealers.
Plenty of adults are addicted to their phones. But it’s a socially accepted addiction. In some cases, our way to socialize has turned into friends being physically in the same space but staring down at their phones, off in their own little worlds.
And that’s so sad. Even just the temptation and habit to mindlessly scroll on social while in a group is there and easy to succumb to. Excuse my boomer-esque feelings but quite frankly, it’s fucking rude to do this.
I’m not immune. I’ve done it. But I don’t want to anymore.
Quitting cold tofurkey might seem like the way, but phones have practically become necessities. Scaling back hard is the way I’ve chosen. But either way, the void it leaves must be filled or else reaching for it in boredom will stay second nature.
This is how I’ve been filling that void.
Choosing physical over digital
A big way I’ve been filling the void is by swapping out my phone for more tangible items.
Instead of reaching for my phone to research plants for our yard and garden, I bought a used book titled Wisconsin Garden Guide from a local used bookstore.
Next on my list to get is a dictionary and a thesaurus. Yep, I’m going way back to the stone age here. Flipping through a dictionary to stumble on a word was always one of my favorite things as a kid. It’s like a little treasure hunt and I want that magic back in my life. Yes, I realize I’m a nerd, thanks for noticing.
Instead of mindlessly scrolling social media, I make sure to always have a book or my e-reader with me (e-ink screens don’t count as screens).
If you’re looking for book recommendations, here’s a few I’ve read this year that I absolutely adored:
Before the Coffee Gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi: A 4-book series that takes place (mostly) at a little café in Tokyo where, rumor has it, you can travel back in time. But, there’s rules to contend with, most importantly of which: you must return before the coffee gets cold.
Yellowface by R.F. Kuang: When June Hayward’s friend, Athena Liu dies in a freak accident, June steals her friend’s latest manuscript and passes it off as her own to chase the literary success Athena always had. How far will June go to claim the fame she always deserved?
Blackout by Dhonielle Clayton, Tiffany D. Jackson, Nic Stone, Angie Thomas, Ashley Woodfolk, and Nicola Yoon: A summer heatwave plunges New York City into darkness. But something else is sparking up, romance between longtime friends, a chance encounter, and even bitter exes.
Currently, I’m reading Circe by Madeline Miller and A Poetry Handbook by Mary Oliver mixed with about 4-5 other poetry and nonfiction books. I’ve never been one to be reading multiple books at the same time but I’m leaning into it! Social media was never just one thing all the time, so why limit it in books?
I’d love to know if you have any book recommendations! I’ve found keeping my to-read list long and healthy has kept me engaged in reading.
What’s your favorite book? Comment below!
But sometimes content doesn’t exist in a physical format…so I’ve been making it!
To replace all the recipes I’d follow on my phone, I started a little recipe book. Slowly but surely I’ve been transferring all the recipes from saved websites to my own format. All of them end up much shorter and easier to follow because I get to rewrite them in a way that makes sense to me!
All of that means less ads to close, less life stories to scroll through, and no more having to wake my phone screen up with my elbow because my hands are dirty.
Eventually I’ll have to color code each kind of recipe. There is no organization. I knew if I’d organized them up front I’d panic about leaving enough room for future recipes. I’d also probably need a computer to help organize them and that would defeat my purpose.
A lot of leaving the digital world behind has meant embracing more chaos and realizing not everything has to be done in the most efficient way possible. Life is messy. People are messy. It makes life more interesting.
I’ve started quite a few other notebooks, too.
Have you ever heard of a commonplace book? It’s a book where you can document ideas, quotes, little tidbits of information, or really anything you want! Think of it like a diary but instead of your reflections and feelings, it’s filled with facts and ideas you’ve come across in your day-to-day life.
Usually they’re organized in a way to make them easy to navigate and refer back to. Like your own little encyclopedia for information that’s important to you!
Starting a commonplace notebook felt daunting at first. So many people have their notebooks categorized and sectioned out so neatly, paired with an easy to follow table of contents. I had no idea what I was going to throw in my notebook which left me paralyzed. Until I came across a video where someone’s commonplace book was chaotic.
She had started her notebook writing passages out from what she was reading and put a table of contents in the back of her notebook to fill in as she added new subjects. So I followed suit!
I just started writing in it. I have no plans, I have no limits, I have no idea where anything is going to go. I’ll make a table of contents one day with color references (or some other sort of system) and make it work!
I think organization can be great but organizing something perfectly shouldn’t stop us from starting. There’s a million different ways to do one thing and each of us has to do it the way it works for us.
What have I been putting in my commonplace notebook?
Mostly book passages. But I’m sure it will expand!
I’ve started keeping my notebook next to me while I read. It makes reading a bit more engaging in some ways. You know how when you listen to a song you love and you add it to a certain playlist or you favorite it or you send it to someone you know? Copying out quotes or passages from books brings that same joy to me. I can always go back and reference what sparked joy or made me feel seen.
I’ve been copying out poem passages as well! While reading What You Are Looking For Is in the Library by Michiko Aoyama, one of the characters checked a poetry book out from the library. In the introduction of that book (getting pretty meta over here reading books within books), it recommended copying out poems or lines from poems that struck you into a notebook to keep for later.
I adored that idea.
And while I’ve been copying out pieces and passages, I think I’m going to start a new notebook for complete poems that I love and keep them like I keep my favorite songs.
I’ve cut digital planners and to-do lists out of my life.
I still have a few digital lists floating around, like a wish list because it’s easier to keep digital with links, but everything else has gone the way of physical notebooks.
I have a physical planner, a lot of scrap paper for my morning to-do lists, and scattered empty notebooks for when I need to vent a situation or feeling out my mind.
Last on my list is to cut out digital notepads. Right now whenever I get an idea for anything creative, I write it down in my Google Keep notes on my phone. But, I’d love to move away from that and have a physical notebook I can carry with me wherever I go.
Falling back in love with screenless hobbies.
I used to reach for my phone out of boredom, so I needed new things to do when I was bored. But I’ve run into a bit of a snag I didn’t expect: I get frustrated with new things more easily than I used to.
When I was a kid, I swear I could work on a jigsaw puzzle or draw or write for long periods of time without losing focus even when I ran into difficulties. Now, if I’m not good at something right away, it feels worse.
I’m not sure if that’s adulthood speaking or the instant gratification my phone gives me rotting my brain (probably the latter).
And with that, hobbies take effort to start! There’s so many times I don’t feel like sitting down at the piano or picking up a brush or a pen where I force myself to. After 10 minutes, usually I’ve settled and start to enjoy what I’m doing.
But picking up your phone doesn’t take effort. You don’t have to really know anything. You don’t have to have a plan. It will take you where it wants to go. But most of the time, it functions as a distraction and doom scrolling isn’t a hobby I’d like to partake in anymore.
So I’ve been trying to learn piano and guitar. I dug out my watercolor paints. I’ve picked up my inks and brushes. I’ve been writing poetry. I’ve planned and dreamed about our future garden and landscaping. I’ve done yard work, went on bike rides, went for more walks. I’ve sat and just listened to music without any other distractions.
There’s so much we can do in the world - and for free!! A lot of what I just listed has some upstart costs but there’s so many activities available to us for no cost that isn’t imprisoned on a 5” screen.
What do you like to do away from your screens?
Along with all of the above: I’m trying to be okay with being bored.
As a kid, being bored was a daily occurrence. I had to find ways to entertain myself. Of course, that came after whining to my parents that I was bored (hi mom!) but as a kid I made up games, I played games my dad made up, I ran around outside for hours, I’d go to friend’s houses without a phone.
It was a very different technology landscape and sometimes I miss those days. But there’s ways I can cultivate that in my life now.
I’ve been trying to leave my phone in other rooms so I’m not tempted to reach for it out of habit. I want to have a reason to grab my phone.
I’ve been putting it in a drawer at night so I don’t see it first thing in the morning or the last thing before I close my eyes.
I’ve been leaving my phone at home when I go for walks or go out to eat. I keep it on silent 99% of the time so my notifications don’t control me.
I make sure to carve out time where there is no music or other background noise playing. I’ll wash the dishes in silence and let my thoughts wander. I’ll tidy up the living room as my mind tries to create poetry or think up drawing ideas. I’ll go for a walk and just soak in my surroundings.
I want to be less distracted. Creativity blossoms in boredom and I want to cultivate that as much as I can.
And of course, there’s a balance to it all. Technology is not evil, it does improve our lives in a lot of ways. But I know the balance is all out of whack in my life.
I’ll end things there with an excerpt from a poem.
I recently picked up Colors Passing Through Us by Marge Piercy from the library and her poem “Got the 21st century blues” really struck me. I highly recommend reading the entire poem but this little snippet sums up my feelings on some of the “comforts” of the modern world:
I am glad all these gadgets
have made my life
so fucking convenient
I can never relax any more.
Maybe a hole in a hollow tree.I have 240 channels and no sound,
I have 120 gigabytes and no files.
I have a furnace and stove
cold as marble slabs
as I wait for the furnace man,
Thanks so much for venturing into the Blue Raspberry Patch with me! I love exploring all these sustainability and design topics in longer form and sharing little berries of info with you all. I’d be delighted if you’d join me here!
Just a tip for the recipes; instead of a notebook, consider a recipe box. They make them large enough for the XL notecards with lines on them. The one my partner's mom got him has a plastic sheet that fits into the lid to hold up the recipe card at a good angle for reading while making the recipe. That way you can organize recipes by paperclipping multi-card recipes together and filing them alphabetically like a filing cabinet. When you add a new recipe, slip it in its place. When I was a kid my mom's box got so full she started a second one and split them so each had ~half the alphabet. I've been enjoying transferring my frequently used digital recipes to notecards and filing them away!
Dishes in silence, yessss! I didn't realize how much I have noise in my life until one day all my devices were charging and I couldn't easily use them. Now I enjoy those moments and try to make more of them. I'm sure my brain appreciates it.
Also, you're a soldier for trying to give up Google Keep. That's my go to!