Last Thursday we had a real dump of snow. So much snow, in-fact that we lost our internet. Loosing the internet initially felt like losing a limb; how would I cope without being able to do my yoga every morning or listen to my audio book while I did my household chores? How would I keep my book Instagram page updated? How would I keep in touch with my friends? It was a restless night the first internet free evening- I suppose it is almost a bit like an addiction having so much ready information at our fingertips- you take a while to get used to not having it around.
It took two days for the mental transformation to take place. The acceptance of internet free life and with the change in mindset suddenly I felt liberated- no longer tied to aimlessly scrolling through social media pages- comparing my baby free solitary self to my, in my eyes more successful, friends posting pictures of their adorable offspring and activities they have got up to. I read a book- well lots of books actually! I took lots of photographs and went on long walks- I slept really well and enjoyed dinners around the dining room table with my family. We played scrabble and read our books beside the fire and we all actually chatted and really enjoyed ourselves.
Five days later and I was into the stride and in my element! I had written three new story ideas and baked pink and blue macaroons, drawn a picture and started knitting- being in lockdown was the first rung in the ladder and now with no internet on top I felt I was becoming increasingly insular and I loved it!
I, therefore, felt a touch of sadness when my father announced that our internet was coming back on again and life would resume a more normal pattern. I made a promise to myself to be disciplined and maintain my internet use to an essential rather than dependent level and so far so good- if it is anything like my discipline to give up alcohol it might not last for ever… but in these COVID-19 times I think we all need one or two vices.
