“My grandparents roll their eyes at me. After spending so many minutes and hours of their years on tedious tasks, they don’t understand why I’d want to exude more elbow grease. They don’t know what the opposite is like - what it’s like to forget that you have hands.”
I’ve been in this same boat for a while. The initial discomfort of not keeping my hands and eyes busy while waiting or on public transit was weird at first but I eased into it pretty quickly. I’ve seen all kinds of weird things there that I wouldn’t have noticed before, which usually gives me inspiration for writing. But other times, it’s boring. However, it feels like I’ve gotten back to daydreaming and zoning out rather than directing my thoughts elsewhere and it’s really nice. I know I’ll never experience a purely analog life—unless I’m a hermit or an apocalypse happens—but at least I feel I’m existing more in the offline world, which has been a privilege and a real treat for me. Thanks for writing what I couldn’t put into words<3
an ipod!! !! that's cool! I've recently retrieved mine and am slightly afraid to turn it on. it's been in my gym bag since the early 2010s ... I fear the spirit of Ke$ha's past will haunt me if I turned it on now
This deeply resonated with me. I have an unspoken rule about not using my phone in transitional spaces (waiting rooms, bus stops, etc.) and instead, sitting patiently or reading. Especially when I see others using their devices. Then I get angry at myself for being so self-righteous but a part of me feels so sad knowing that there was a time when we didn't need to do this. Sometimes I hope that by being one of the odd ones out in the room, it inspires others to do the same? This is coming from an honest place in my heart...
In the ‘90s, I’d commute in the early morning to my dreary data entry job on the New York subway. There were no phones then. Everyone sat in a stunned stupor, avoiding each other’s gaze. I would project my own collision between my dreams and reality onto my fellow passengers and quietly cry.
This really resonated with me! I've been taking long walks and going to new places alone a lot recently, and there's something sort of daunting at times about engaging with the world like that because I sort of feel like people around me are going to perceive me as lacking something if I'm not obviously engaged with something. I really relate to the feeling you describe on the plane where everyone's looking at the screens in front of them as well because I'm always riding the subway and thinking how weird it is that I'm technically in a crowd of people but no one's actually engaging with each other.
Yes yes! For me the craving for a pre-digital life is a lot of things: ownership over my will (vs algorithms), feeling the fullness of life, and for want that the difficulty of community should be a shared burden. digitization has made us forget how much we love the living, by overstating the burden of inconvenience. i want the callouses on my hands to remind me of who i have chosen to be, you know? that i've existed, cooked, climbed, lived.
Loved this and I am the same. Craving to do the things how they are supposed to be done, without shortcuts. Recently started using a notebook again instead of my notes app and it has been a blast and so much more fun.
i try to avoid wireless electronics to reduce RF pollution. my mobile phone functions only as a walkman/camera - no sim card or wifi EVER. i chop all the food i eat. i swore never to use AI in any form. i highly recommend this video and channel:
“My grandparents roll their eyes at me. After spending so many minutes and hours of their years on tedious tasks, they don’t understand why I’d want to exude more elbow grease. They don’t know what the opposite is like - what it’s like to forget that you have hands.”
Oh. This stopped me in my tracks.
I’ve been in this same boat for a while. The initial discomfort of not keeping my hands and eyes busy while waiting or on public transit was weird at first but I eased into it pretty quickly. I’ve seen all kinds of weird things there that I wouldn’t have noticed before, which usually gives me inspiration for writing. But other times, it’s boring. However, it feels like I’ve gotten back to daydreaming and zoning out rather than directing my thoughts elsewhere and it’s really nice. I know I’ll never experience a purely analog life—unless I’m a hermit or an apocalypse happens—but at least I feel I’m existing more in the offline world, which has been a privilege and a real treat for me. Thanks for writing what I couldn’t put into words<3
an ipod!! !! that's cool! I've recently retrieved mine and am slightly afraid to turn it on. it's been in my gym bag since the early 2010s ... I fear the spirit of Ke$ha's past will haunt me if I turned it on now
This deeply resonated with me. I have an unspoken rule about not using my phone in transitional spaces (waiting rooms, bus stops, etc.) and instead, sitting patiently or reading. Especially when I see others using their devices. Then I get angry at myself for being so self-righteous but a part of me feels so sad knowing that there was a time when we didn't need to do this. Sometimes I hope that by being one of the odd ones out in the room, it inspires others to do the same? This is coming from an honest place in my heart...
In the ‘90s, I’d commute in the early morning to my dreary data entry job on the New York subway. There were no phones then. Everyone sat in a stunned stupor, avoiding each other’s gaze. I would project my own collision between my dreams and reality onto my fellow passengers and quietly cry.
This really resonated with me! I've been taking long walks and going to new places alone a lot recently, and there's something sort of daunting at times about engaging with the world like that because I sort of feel like people around me are going to perceive me as lacking something if I'm not obviously engaged with something. I really relate to the feeling you describe on the plane where everyone's looking at the screens in front of them as well because I'm always riding the subway and thinking how weird it is that I'm technically in a crowd of people but no one's actually engaging with each other.
Yes yes! For me the craving for a pre-digital life is a lot of things: ownership over my will (vs algorithms), feeling the fullness of life, and for want that the difficulty of community should be a shared burden. digitization has made us forget how much we love the living, by overstating the burden of inconvenience. i want the callouses on my hands to remind me of who i have chosen to be, you know? that i've existed, cooked, climbed, lived.
You inspired me to write this.
https://open.substack.com/pub/thoughtlauncher/p/analog-memories-pt-1?r=109n0&utm_medium=ios&utm_source=post-publish
Love it!! Thank u for sharing :)
Loved this and I am the same. Craving to do the things how they are supposed to be done, without shortcuts. Recently started using a notebook again instead of my notes app and it has been a blast and so much more fun.
all the things you speak about here are weaved together so beautifully <3
oh, I don't even have the words to describe how I felt about this piece. divine work as always <3
Wow thank you so much :)) so glad you enjoyed it!
i try to avoid wireless electronics to reduce RF pollution. my mobile phone functions only as a walkman/camera - no sim card or wifi EVER. i chop all the food i eat. i swore never to use AI in any form. i highly recommend this video and channel:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qzqJS_EJV94