Unplugged

“Almost everything will work again if you unplug it for a few minutes, including you.” – Anne Lamott

So I think I’m becoming a hippie.

Hear me out.

I’m not talking about the 60s, long dreads, afraid of showers stereotype. I’m talking about the connecting back to nature/natural products & pulling away from the “metallic” taste I get from technology, chemically processed items, & all the noise it brings. I don’t like how technology expects me to update my life constantly & be available at every second. There’s something dangerous about that. So I’m working on unplugging.

I’ve briefly touched this topic before but it’s really been reeling in my head lately. One of my friends (MM) gave up Facebook for Lent. He said he hasn’t missed it & he’s felt better. I don’t think he’s worried about FOMO or anything, which to me, would be the only reason it would hold someone back. He suggested for me to try it & I decided to take him up on his offer. It was easy for me since I felt like it was all becoming noisy & chaotic. I was bored scrolling through all the posts when it hit me, “Why am I doing this? Because I’m bored? I should do something more productive.”

This past week, I’ve dropped my “availability” on Facebook to 10 minutes a day. Why didn’t I just deactivate my account? Well, I use it almost daily for work & my boss freaked out the last time I merely suggested to her that I might remove it. So in an effort to not piss her off LOL, I figured 10 minutes a day is reasonable to see whatever she posts for her staff. I also removed it from my phone along with my other time-killer, BuzzFeed. Those two are pretty much the only social media sites I actively use. I occasionally use Pinterest but that’s more if I’m looking up a specific item. I don’t bother with others because I don’t want to waste my time. Type A & all. 🙂

So since I pulled back, big shocker, I feel fine. Better, really. MM was totally right. I suggested it to another friend (CR) & she deactivated her account as well. I don’t feel like I’m missing out on anything in the world. And even if I did, I believe I’m at this point in my life where I’m not sure if I even care.

Okay, so that’s the technology side of things. That alone doesn’t really make me a hippie. However, I’m really interested in using homemade products, zero waste, upcycling, & whatnot. That thought is pretty funny to me. I grew up in a far-right wing house who daily listened to Rush Limbaugh as if he was God Himself (so much so my bird’s name was Ditto). We used to mock those who wanted to take care of the Earth. Now I find myself more left-leaning on the Libertarian *”scale” & realizing there’s no need to be so wasteful. We SHOULD take care of our planet.

I’ve done some research & I’m interested in trying a few things to help cut back on pointless waste. Some stuff is cheaper in bulk or to make yourself. I think once you realize they don’t make products as well as they use to (& for their own greedy reasons) you begin to wonder how much waste & money some of these products are costing you. I’ll let you know what aspect I go after first. Right now, I’m trying to decide which part to shift over first. I’m thinking cleaning products.

I have a few friends who are beautiful hippies or **Wiccans who are totally supportive & also know the benefits of using more natural products. They’re more into crystals & “blessed be” than I am but we do have common ground. We can all agree that pulling away from technology & using natural products are better for your mind, body, & soul. I’ve been cleaning with white vinegar lately & it works just as good as my bleach wipes but no harmful bleach chemicals. Winner, winner.

Okay, so this is getting to be a super long post. You can tell I’ve done a lot of thinking about this. What about you? Any suggestions?

* I’m calling it this since, in my experience, most of us realize the world is more grey versus black & white. Unlike Democrats or Republicans who may feel pigeonholed into their political beliefs, I feel like there’s more “wiggle room” with Libertarianism. 

** Wicca isn’t the same as the dark witchcraft you’re probably thinking. They don’t dress in all black or sacrifice kittens or have warts on their noses. Hollywood, like everything else in life, has completely jacked that up. Wiccans are like happy, little, forest fairies. Harmless, really. They’re not gonna cast a spell on you & turn you into a frog. A newt, maybe. But not a frog. 😉