Abstinence

As an avid Star Wars fan it was hard for me to stay unplugged for the majority or the Star Wars Celebration in Anaheim, but I did get to see Force Awakens and the new Battlefront trailer. I Started the abstinence assignment Saturday at 12:01 a.m. and ended Sunday night (technically Monday 12:01).

Saturday was Record Store Day. I've had a record player for the past couple years so this is an annual ritual for me but I figured what better timing than during my digital separation. I went up to the record store in Cedar City and got myself an exclusive Grizzly Bear album. With my new record, I went back and tried to figure out what to do for the rest of my day. I noticed that this was hard to do, even though I thought it would be a cinch. I wanted to send snapchats of ridiculous things to my friends. I wanted to tweet about my pointlessly random everyday tasks. But I couldn't. So instead of scrolling through Facebook for hours on end, I decided to catch up on learning Japanese. These books I had bought months ago and had never been opened had suddenly taken most of my day. I was reading for hours and it felt far more refreshing than my Facebook feed.

But reading for the entirely 48 hours seemed kind of pointless so I tried to do things that I do on a daily basis. Filming. I normally shoot videos with my digital SLR but I suddenly remembered that my grandpa gave me a Super 8 Minolta camera for my birthday. I used it. It was a fun experience (and now I have to try to figure out where I can get it developed).

I had to work on Sunday so I had to use the company computer to clock in so I am guilty of some digital use. I also didn't have cash so I had to use my debit card for my lunch break. And I couldn't help but feel guilty about it!

I got home from work last night and made dinner and then spent some time with my family. I talked with my dad about his recent fishing trip that he was overly excited about. These may have been the most productive 48 hours of my life (at least since I got a smartphone) and it was enjoyable. Even if it was incredibly hard to do. And I will admit that the second my 48 hours were up I went straight to facebook.