Free Yourself from the Internet

This may seem a bit hypocritical, but I am urging folks to cease their dependence on the internet. Mind you, it is useful at times and should be used appropriately, but all too many of us are overly dependent. Use it when needed for business or research, maybe a tiny bit for recreation, then get off

I am urging this because of recent events in my life. For about the last 2 weeks, I have had a lot of vision problems. Reading was impossible, TV watching was difficult, and I even had trouble crossing streets. Much of this was due to allergies and I will write more about that later, but computer use did not help. How do I know that? Easy, I quit using my computer fro most of 2 weeks. My eyes stopped burning, my vision is less blurred. I still have the allergies but simply staying aqay from computer screens has made a world of difference.

There are other benefits. I have spent more time exercising and more time talking and listening to actual people instead of communicating with electronic entities. Also, staying way from glaring and rapidly changing images has steadied my brain a bit.

Give it a try and lessen your dependence on computers. Use them when you musr, but do not overdo it. Glance away from the screen often. get a screen glare reduction device and increase the size of the print you are viewing. Take care of your eyes.

The Internet

I just wanted to write a short note today about something that almost slipped my mind. Due to Hurricane Matthew, I was without internet access, recently, for 10 days. I have mentioned this before and I will say it again. Stop being so dependent on the internet.

It was a bit of a shock for about a day, and then I began doing all the things I could have been doing all that time I was online looking at, well, junk. It's worse than TV. Right now, I am doing my blogs and looking for a publisher for some fiction I have written. Other than that, I am not using my internet much at all.

I am also writing this because of the recent news events. Russia and the us are seemingly engaging in ever escalating cyber espionage. recently, hackers got into some Russian agency. Other hackers shut down Amazon, Netflix and Twitter, among other things. Banks, Credit Companies, and various stores are hacked. So is, from time to time, the Defense  Department and the State Department. Just ask Hillary.

So far, the damages, while serious, are not catastrophic. There is so much redundancy that it is unlikely that the internet can be totally shut down, unless of course some one sets off some sort of electromagnetic pulse or a serious Solar event occurs and then the internet will be the least of our worries. But, some shutdowns and some sabotage is almost a sure bet, as are continues t hefts of credit information. I urge every one to start rethinking their dependence on the internet. Besides, just think of all the other things you can do.

The Internet

Right now, as I am writing this, our cable and internet are out. They're doing work in the area and I have no idea how long this will take. I can live without TV, but I find myself a bit adrift without the internet. For example, I cannot post what I am writing. I am apartment huntinng and it's darn hard to do that these days without going on line. I am looking for book and magazine publishers to send my work to and I cannot even check my bank account. Now, I am not as dependent on my computer as some folks, but this little down spell is making me aware of just what a disaster it would be if the internet went away suddenly.

And, it might. There have been cyberattacks and there will be more. There are environmental disasters and we have been darn lucky that nothing catastrophic has hit.

So, I am beleiving more and more, that we should begin weaning ourselves away from technological dependence. Keep some paper and pencils around in case you can't access a calculator. Make sure you have phone numbers in order if, one day, you can't email. Back up any important files and print out the information; just store it away. You may never need it but, if you do, you'll be very glad you have it.

Remember, if you lose your internet connections, that will include that smart phone and you probably won't want to roam the neighborhoods looking for a free signal to hitch to.

If you also lose your cable, and often they are bundled together, you better have some ways to entertain yourself. For ideas, I invite you to look at one of my other blogs, Entertainment and Pastimes. The link is near the bottom of this page.

Actually, losing the internet may, ultimately be a kind of mixed blessing, forcing us to get off our rears and do things. Now, if we lost our electricity, that would not be fun, especially since the air conditioner would be off and it is supposed to hit 100 today. Oh well, one day that may happen, but I sure hope it's in the winter.