Reporting Back

Okay, well, that was interesting. The media fast didn't go quite as planned, but it was eye-opening anyway. For one thing, I spent one day in the Emergency Room and took along a book to keep me company, so so much for swearing off books for the week. (I took along In Praise of Slow by Carl Honoré, which seemed appropriate as I sat waiting...and waiting...while the nurses at the desk chatted and Skyped with a colleague who was on vacation).

For another thing, when the TV was turned off in the evening, we discovered that we, in fact, were tired - and instead of letting the TV keep us up later than we really intended, we found ourselves going to bed at 8:30. Even the teenager.

My son and I played just one board game, a lovely homemade Parcheesi game my sister sent us at Christmas, and we cooked together once, but most evenings my son retired to bed with a book and fell asleep reading.

It wasn't too hard to let go of Facebook, though I did peek a couple of times to see if any new photos were posted of my far-away grand-daughter. And I did email a couple of times to check on my sister in law, who was slated for cancer surgery this week, but I think that's forgivable. I also emailed a friend a lead on a job, but I think that's okay too.

So did I learn anything? I learned that the puppy can suck up every spare minute I want to give him, playing fetch. I learned that my favourite TV show, while fun, is not vital to my happiness (currently it's Murdoch's Mysteries). I learned I can do without the news - the bits broadcasted on the screens at the subway were enough. I learned that I really CAN'T go a week without reading, or I start hanging over people's shoulders on the subway to see what they're reading. I learned that even if given the time to do it, I still don't knit.

Was the experiment worthwhile? I think so. Will I do it again? Probably fairly frequently. But next time I force us to stay awake long enough to have more family time!