going off the grid

so last year i did something i had wanted to do for a long time...took a long awaited trip 'off the grid'. no cell phone or computer access for 6 months...sept to march of this year. did some traveling, visiting old friends, etc. but NO cell phone. NO computer. it's harder than you think. there was a feeling of freedom, but at the same time i felt the tugs of needing to be in touch. but after 3 months or so i realized not being in touch wasn't so bad.

anybody else tried this, or thought about it?

and do you think you could do it?

JPdM

Wow JPdM! I'll give ya props for doing that, I don't think I could anymore. Too hooked on Internet porn! But as I was already in my 30's before Al Gore invented the Internet, lol, and was 40 something before even getting a cellphone, it would be kinda like going back to the bad old days. Like ya tell ur kids,"I used to walk to school, 4 miles, uphill, both ways, in the snow, in July!". Hell, I only got a smartphone about 18 months ago. Don't know what you do for a living dude, but I'm like most people whose job is like a hamster wheel, crawl on and spin it for 40-45 years, then hope you can crawl off. Taking 6 months off and hitting the road sounds awesome, but not feasible for those like me. Glad to see ya back on the board JPdM. Hope you're sojourn gave ya what you were looking for.

Nope, no way. I liked going on a cruise. Once the ship sails and in between ports, no reason to rush. But 7 days was a looooong time. Still, hats off to you for doing it.

You're a brave man. Last summer I took a 10 day trip out of the country with no phone and Internet. By the second day I was starting to go fucking crazy but by the end it was nice not having to worry about anything.

NO ECCIE FOR 6 MONTHS??? Well...I guess that could be a bad thing and a good thing too!

I went on a cruise for a week and finally paid for the horrible internet service because I couldn't staned the withdrawal syptoms from not being connected to the world. I will admit, towards the end of the week, I did get use to not hearing my phone ping.

I guess I'm just wired different. when I went on a cruise I didnt notice not having the internet and I didn't use my cell phone either. I was too involved with the atmosphere of the ocean views and other activities. I didn't really notice until I got back and remembered to turn my phone back on. It was great.

I wouldn't mind leaving behind the internet and cell phone for a while. It's nice to be completely in the here and now sometimes. I know a few people who literally facebook, instagram, and tweet their every single move, every day of their life. I don't see how or why they do it. Is it some kind of co-dependent narcissistic addiction?

My family has a house on a lake on the NY/VT border area about 100 miles from the Canadian border. Solar power on good days, propane tanked in and wood on all the others. No cell reception no cable no nothin. You have to get mentally prepared to chill and especially make certain that you like the people you are with. Alcohol helps bide the time along with some real honest to goodness books. And just when you have desensitized, it's time to come back to the RW... Going off the grid maybe be blog or book worthy..... Just something to consider

bs

I think I could do it if I didn't work. I have to be able to be in touch with my place of work. I've been over a week without talking to them, but they need to be able to reach me just in case.

Not sure about the family issues. Suppose a parent is ill or dies. Or your kid dies, etc. Hard to see the advantage of being totally out of touch. Not sure I'd really want to be that far out of touch for more than a few days.

Although this guy's experience lands a bit short of going "off the grid" for any extended period of time, I thought it was interesting:

Disruptions: Even the Tech Elites Leave Gadgets Behind

By NICK BILTONIf you were to meet 32-year-old Robin Sloan of San Francisco, you might think him a Luddite unable to get his head around new technologies. He owns an old Nokia phone with one main application: making phone calls. He takes notes using a pen and paper notepad. And he reads books printed on paper.

But Mr. Sloan is far from a Luddite. He used to work at Twitter as a media manager, teaching news outlets to use the hottest social media tools. Before that he was with Current TV as an online strategist, inventing the future of digital journalism.

Yet last year, as he set out to write his first book, “Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore,” he found his iPhone and other technologies were getting in the way of his productivity, so he simply got rid of them. “I found it was more important and more productive for me to be daydreaming and jotting down notes,” he said. “I needed my idle minutes to contribute to the story I was doing, not checking my e-mail, or checking tweets.”

Even in Silicon Valley, Mr. Sloan has company.

As every aspect of our daily lives has become hyperconnected, some people on the cutting edge of tech are trying their best to push it back a few feet. Keeping their phone in their pocket. Turning off their home Wi-Fi at night or on weekends. And reading books on paper, rather than pixels.
I’ve experienced this, too.

Two years ago, when the iPhone and iPad were spiking in popularity, when I dined with other technology bloggers and reporters we enthusiastically passed our phones around the table, showing off the latest app or funny YouTube clip.

Now, even as our gadgets can hold more apps and stream faster videos, when I’m at dinner with technologists we play a new game. Attendees happily place their smartphones in a stack in the middle of the table, and the first person who touches his or her phone before the meal is over has to pay the bill.

Some couples who work in tech seem to be trying to step back the most.
“At least once a month my wife and I jump in our car and drive until cell service drops off (yes, this is possible) and spend the weekend engaged with all things analog,” Evan Sharp, a founder of Pinterest, said — on e-mail. “We read, we walk all over the California hills, we cook, we meet people who don’t work in technology.”

Other couples have told me of a “no gadgets in the bedroom” rule. (Kindles are sometimes an exception.) Some say they leave their phones at home when they go for Sunday brunch. Rather than take a picture of their bacon and eggs to post to Instagram, they can now enjoy each other’s company, and do that strange thing called talking.

There could even be a business model in products that encourage us to step away from our gadgets.

Last Tuesday, Penguin Press published “The Pocket Scavenger,” a book both physical and digital that encourages readers to go on an unusual scavenger hunt, collecting random objects, drawing and smudging on the book’s pages, then documenting them later with a smartphone.

“We’re not going to get rid of technology,” said Keri Smith, the author. “I feel like we’ve lost touch with noticing smells and tactile sensations, and I’d just like to offer some kind of antidote to what’s out there.”

As for Mr. Sloan, who has since published his book, he said his break from technology was a resounding success. He still checks his e-mail, but not while he’s getting coffee with someone or going for a stroll.

Although he isn’t rushing off to buy the next iPhone, he said he wouldn’t rule it out. But he would use such a device differently than he did before downgrading his cellphone.

“It sounds silly because we all used to do this all the time, but after getting rid of my smartphone I am now so much more comfortable just leaving the house without any phone at all,” he said. “I feel like I kind of learned how to do that again, and I would do the same thing if I had a fancy new smartphone too.”
E-mail: bilton@nytimes.com

URL @ http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/0.../?ref=business