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Addicted, and yet so removed

Ashamedly, I haven't written a post in over a month. Now, I write three other blogs as well as for Examiner on a regular (or sometimes no-so regular) basis, but that doesn't mean my Ideas have diminished, so where have I been?

Especially when I have recently learned that I am, indeed addicted to the internet, sad but true. Read that article, and tell me if you are too... but this point dawned on me when we were just recently in NYC for a few days and our (gasp!) phones went out. Both of them. With no way to Tweet my awesome experiences, I felt detached from the world, my friends, and my online family. Yet I've only been a member of Twitter for about a year- so what did we do before these online social networks? My only answer is, Who cares?

I was actually turned on to the above Addicted article through reading an article on America-the No Vacation Nation, where I realized a sad but very real point, that we are working our country to death. I already think we watch too much tv- so much so that our newest generation is riddled with ADHD, and yet I have a 42" plasma that uses way too much electricity in my living room. Worse, it is the focal point of our living room. Every chair in it points to the glowing God.

I can point the finger in so many directions; we eat so much sugar our kids not only have ADHD they have obesity and diabetes, we are so lazy we drive to the neighbor's house two blocks away, we are overworked that we rarely take vacations and feel guilty for leaving the office at 4pm on Friday, we are so under schooled that our spelling and reading levels are declining at a rapid rate... You get my point, I'm not jaded, we're just a nutty country that has taken a few wrong turns.

But I live in paradise up in the woods, rarely read the paper or watch the news, don't have kids of my own, try to meditate and practice yoga daily, and spend a lot of time outside in all seasons. I feel so removed from many of the problems of our country that when I DO read articles like No Vacation, I am shocked, disappointed, saddened, and helpless.

So, at a loss for ideas apparently (since having not written one down since September 2nd!), I give to you a challenge instead (Pick one):

  • Take more vacation, even if it's just to Grandmother's house because that's all that fits into your budget.
  • Spend more time outside, even if it's cold and windy and you hate iceskating.
  • Follow the Life Is Good Motto: Do what you like, and like what you do. If you have always dreamed of being a photographer or a nurse or an expert scrapbooker, teach a class, take a class, and follow your dreams.
  • Read more. It expands your vocabulary. Join a book club for new ideas and new friends.
  • Spend less time on the internet. I'm going to leave my desk RIGHT now for at least two hours, and I don't feel guilt about it one bit.

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