A Weekend Unplugged

I recently came back from a weekend up North. It's what Minnesotans do :) We packed up Baby Girl, dumped the dog at my father-in-laws and took off on our four hour drive. Away from the cities, away from the suburbs, away from cell phone service.

Surrounded by green, dirt roads, and the best lake on the planet, it was easy to relax and let go. I honestly don't feel like I spend much time on my cell phone. My father in law would disagree, but he would. As I take stock of the people around me and see how much time they spend plugged in (phones, computer, TV), I don't feel 'that bad' about my own cell phone use.



Getting to the cabin this weekend really opened my eyes to how much electronics have taken over our lives. Here we all were surrounded by beauty, family and friends and as I looked around the living room, each person was on their electronic device. It truly shocked me, this 'need' to check Facebook in the middle of nowhere. I made an effort to stay away from my phone for the rest of the weekend, minus my camera and step counter.

Credit to Dee Lindstrom

And I am not trying to sound all high and mighty, I use my phone plenty, especially if I am tired and need to 'zone'. But I don't want to be checking Facebook when my friends are around 'just to see' what's going on. I don't want to be checking email while my daughter wants me to play with her. And I sure don't want to be messaging will out on a date with my husband.

Being up North made me stop and reexamine my 'need' to be plugged in. Made me wonder how much I am missing, sacrificing, or could be accomplishing instead of updating my feed. There is a time and a place to Instagram (trust me, I won't be 'going off the grid'!), but I can wait to upload my picture of nature when I am still in the middle of nature.

Also, I hope you enjoyed a bit of irony with my nature pictures :)

Credit to Tina Korsmoe