I've always enjoyed technology. I loved my Atari 2600 in all its pixalated glory it. Before the Nintendo, those graphics were bad and blocky and brilliant and I loved it!
I remember when my dad brought home our first family PC in 95'. It was a Gatway with those hidious cow boxes it came in. A time before pentium and before Mac's got cool we rolled in a 486 baby!
Enough of my geekyness coming out...AOL is what made that computer unforgettable. The sound of dialup and the bing of the instant message. It was cool. Chat rooms were not, but that's another blog for another day.
I still have the same email address from when I was sixteen. I still have it and love it and use it. There is just something about getting connected thru technology, now with the advent of Facebook as the new AOL and Twitter as the new instant message with benefits, it apart of my life.
However... maybe I was alittle too connected to FB & Twitter...to technology.
I wouldn't spend hours on FB but I would update my status alot, esp thru my phone.
I would start to think in statuses.
I would feel pressure to comment back at any moment, even sometimes while driving.
I would get addicted to that sensation of long ago with those three little words... "You've Got Mail," but now its comment replies and mentions that had my ears and thumbs buzzin'.
I had an epiphany of sorts when I was visiting my wives' grandparents and I was on my phone (tweeting not talking) and my wife would ask me to get her a drink and I would be delayed in my response because I was so engaged.
I was so engrossed in my phone her dad got my wife a drink before I could...or would.
Something had to change. I had to change.
So I promised my wife and myself that I would not use social media for a week to gain some perspective back and some brownie points :-)
It wasn't to hard at first. Actually it felt pretty good. My morning routine of checking the Philadelphia Daily News (online) and checking FB and Twitter status was alittle different now.
I would read more during my morning devotions. I would find myself reading books that I wanted to finish. Just felt like I had more time now.
Then things started happening.
I was missing events in the global conversation.
Like something that only happens every four years...
Epic World Cup comebacks by the USA team to win the group stage for the first time since 1930.
The marathon match of unmanageable proportions at Wimbledon between the American Ishner and the Frenchman Mahut that went 3 days over 11 hours 138 games in a tiebreak.
This was great stuff and I felt like I was missing out.
I would even get people texting me to tweet or get on Facebook to join this social media conversation.
I was good. I stuck to my word.
I love sports but I also wanted to tweet about my personal life highlights too.
Weddings of a former TLY Staffer that got married this weekend. So happy for him and his new bride.
It was Tweet-worthy stuff.
Some great times with TLY students, awesome and unforgettable moments from the weekend at grad parties. Our worship team reuniting with returning college students for an impromptu jam session that left me pretty emotional.
Probably the main reason for the nostalgia was because I also announced this weekend my transition to my church family at York First Assembly, of God calling me and my family to plant a church in Towson MD.
No updates.
No comments.
Just moments.
I found myself more engaged in the here and now not in the FB news feed or What's Happening on Twitter.
I was present.
I was engaged.
I found myself to be more thoughtful with my wife. A better conversationalist. A better husband.
This week I plan to go back into the digital world that I love, but maybe with a little more wisdom and balance.
I plan to take a day each week where I will be totally disconnected.
I am going to try to be a husband who listens more and tweets less.
I think the status I will focus more on will be my marital status.
She is always what's happening.
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