Tag: technology

The “No-Internet Challenge,” What I Did For a Weekend Without The Internet

On By inspiredodysseyIn Life, UncategorizedLeave a comment

Batman Draw

So I did it! And what a weekend it was! I can honestly say, it was the best weekend of my life, and the best one I’ve had in a really long time. This meant no phone apps, no streaming, and an absolute zero online presence. The computers and laptops were off, and I watched a lot of TV and listened to the radio, (today is National Radio Day, by the way). I did a lot of the things we tend to neglect, like going to a class to reduce your car insurance, drawing, and coloring and reading a book you have been carrying around for a very long time.

I read a book called “The Prophet” by Kahlil Gibran, on Sunday, that I have been carrying around with me for about 20 years and I never read. An ex-boyfriend of mine gave it to me and said it would change my life, and it absolutely did.

There was one thing in particular that stood out to me of what I read; it was a passage about houses:

Your house is your larger body, what do you have in these houses? And what is it you guard with fastened doors? Have you peace, remembrances, and beauty in your houses? Or have you only comfort, the stealthy thing that enters the house as a guest, and then becomes a host, and then your master? Ay, then soon it becomes a tamer with a hook and scourge which makes puppets out of your desires. Verily the lust for comfort murders the passion of the soul, and then walks away grinning at the funeral. You shall be free when your days are without a care nor your nights without a want and grief – and when they girdle your life, you will find freedom when you rise above them naked and unbound.

To me, that encapsulates what the internet as a whole has done to us, and what we must free ourselves from. I have never been more free in my life, and when I wake up now, I feel nothing but joy in my heart. Through all the pain and sorrow of my younger days, I am approaching 40 without alcohol, drugs, cigarettes, gaming, Netflix, my cell phone and everything else most of the world are slaves to. This is a new era, a new day, and tomorrow will be an even better one.

And in regards to friendships, Mr. Gibran shared this:

Let your best, be for your friend. For what is your friend that you seek with hours to kill? Seek them always with hours to live. For it is theirs to fill your need, not your emptiness. For the dew of the little things that the heart finds its morning and is refreshed.

Try it for yourself. Do all your work, write all your emails, put an away message on your phone, and plan to take a “vacation” from the internet. Maybe go hang out with friends, see a movie, or just do what I did and stay at home with your TV and with yourself. I can’t tell you how alive I feel after those three days.

Oh and one more thing: even though I am writing this in this blog, Mr. Gibran shared this with me, to remind me to always stay humble:

A good deed that calls itself tender names becomes the parent to a curse.

I shall remember that, Mr. Gibran.

Stay tuned.

 

The No-Internet Challenge – Do You Think You Can Live Without The Internet?

On By inspiredodysseyIn LifeLeave a comment

NoInternetHero

So can you? I mean no streaming, no phone apps, no email, no YouTube, no social media, NOTHING??? I dare you to try it! I am going on an Internet strike from Friday to Monday to see how life would be without the internet. I was talking to a friend today about all the problems in the world, and I wondered if God asked me right now if I could fix everything that is screwed up about this planet what it would it be?

TAKE AWAY THE INTERNET.

Simple. Straight to the point. Just kill the whole system, lock everything down, and the only way anyone in the world could use the internet is for work purposes ONLY. It would a tool, just like a car, or a screwdriver – when you need it to get something done you use it, then you turn it the HELL OFF. It was a radical idea, a random thought that just stuck in my head. All these terrorist groups, the Dark Web that steals all your money and identity, Bitcoin and their bullshit digital currency that has you spending all your hard-earned money on virtual air, Facebook stealing everything about you, Google tracking you and sharing everything – ALL OF IT- JUST DONE AND GONE –

I grew up in a time before the internet, so I know what life was like before it. We got around, we did what we had to do, we called each other on the phone, we hung out together, yadda yadda yadda – people are always talking about a “simpler time” but what does that mean exactly? When people say, “I wish it were like the old days,” what are they referring to? LIFE WITHOUT THE INTERNET, that’s what.

I mean, look I’ll give ya some freebies. In this “newborn no internet age,” you can have three apps. Just three.

  • Waze – (GPS and Navigation)
  • Skype (Telecommunications and Long Distance)
  • LinkedIn – To network – PROFESSIONALLY, seriously enough with the stupid memes already.

Would it really be such a horrible place to live in? My friend told me, as a species, we are not mature enough for all this technology. In every generation, there are a host of problems, but for all the things the internet has fixed, what has it taken from us? Do we smile at strangers while we are waiting in line? No, we are ass deep in our phones not even looking up when our order is called at Starbucks. Do we ask people out on a date or for their phone number if we see them and we think them attractive? No, because someone, somewhere will protest the shit out of your gesture. Do we even remember what an arcade is??? I give it to Dave and Buster’s, they are keeping the dream alive.

We are so stuck, so stuck in a digital world, that we have entirely forgotten what it’s like to be human. This is funny because people make fun of the Fast and Furious franchise, but not only was the latest installment, “Hobbes and Shaw,” entertaining as all get out, one of the underlying themes of that movie was family and heart. We have lost our soul and spirit and replaced it with an Avatar kicking ass in XBOX LIVE. We have eliminated game night and now chat on Discord servers as if that is healthy.

So I am doing it. After I post this, I am going to pose the challenge to my very few social media friends, some forums somewhere, and “go dark” till Monday. I will HAVE TO use the internet at least on Saturday to check my schoolwork, but I think I can get away with the app on my phone for that and THAT ONLY.

What am I going to do over the weekend? Pretend it was 1994 again. Plug in my stereo, tune into the local radio stations, break out my PS2 and play some Tombraider, watch some TV, (on cable, no streaming), and just hang out and read a book, or three. I may draw and color a bit, redecorate my room, and call up some friends, (on a landline), and see if they want to get together over the weekend.

So do you think you can do it?

I dare you!

Join me in a No-Internet Challenge This Weekend!!!

Stay tuned.

What Do You Do With Your Time??

On By inspiredodysseyIn Life, Uncategorized3 Comments

wasting time

Is it Netflix? Is it gaming? Is it wasting time online in a black hole of Youtube videos? Social media posting? Or just straight-up wasting time on God Knows What? In recent days, I have definitely felt a shortage in time, and I am yet to find out what it is that I am wasting all this time on. I have gotten in the habit of sitting up in bed with my laptop and watching something that I am not really paying attention to and getting lost online in a world of boring chatrooms, or endless forums. I wonder, should I be spending more time outside within the three-dimensional world, rather than wasting countless hours on devices? Have we, as a society, become so hooked on devices, electronics, and gadgets that we’ve forgotten about our fellow man?

There is no doubt in my mind that we have lost the ability to relate to people. If we are not behind a screen, we have no idea how to talk to someone. I don’t have this problem because I grew up in an era where everybody played outside and the only device we had in the house for entertainment was the radio and TV, which absolutely didn’t have a remote control and you had to physically get up and change the channel to one of the seven only channels that were available. A phone call from a boy came in on the only landline phone in the house and you were always excited to hear what they would say. The MOST fun though was when said boy asked you out and you went on a fun date at the arcade or pizza place.

However, those days are long over.

In recent years, I have become fascinated with the online dating culture because I love shameless entertainment, (I find Reality-TV to fake to deal with); I would rather hear real-life horror (or love) stories that capture the heart and imagination. I have spent many hours on WordPress in the past reading about all the online dating adventures of singles from all over the world. Did any of you meet your significant other online? I have to imagine the answer is “yes” to that question because more and more people are meeting their partners online than in the more traditional sense. I would love to elaborate on this but I am going to end up going on a rant on how the whole #MeToo movement has crippled male confidence exponentially to the point they are scared to walk up to a woman and ask her out, buy her a drink or ask for her phone number. People just don’t do that anymore, and it’s just sad. I have bought men drinks and talked to them when I was out and about in the past, and it was always an exhilarating experience. There is nothing like getting an acknowledging smile or handshake when you compliment a person and let them know you would like to talk to them. I try and do that now and all I get are weird looks – go figure.

But yes, time, that’s what we are discussing. I find the fact that we are now in solitary relationships with our phones, entertainment devices, games, and TV, that we are no longer communicating with the outside world. If we are interacting, we are behind a screen sending ridiculous eggplant emojis to let the other person know we think they’re sexy. How awful is that? Let’s not even get into the countless exchange of genital pics, (it has become apparent that “dick pics” aren’t the only scandalous things being shared these days).  I find it so sad that we are just wasting all this time and energy on things that don’t really give us anything back but a shot of dopamine and for every dopamine hit we get, we keep obsessing and going back for more like dopamine drug addicts.

Recently, I learned about an interesting hormone in our brain called oxytocin, which is more commonly known as the cuddle hormone. Every time we feel compassion or caring for another human being, like being affectionate or hugging someone, this oxytocin hormone is released in our blood and can actually help reduce stress in our daily lives. So for all the stress we are giving ourselves when one of our devices doesn’t work, or pulling our hair out because we didn’t receive a text, the best thing for our health would be to visit a real-life friend and spend quality time with them. This is vital to our lifespan and our growth as human beings and the more time we spent apart and locked in a trance of our electronic gadgets, the less human we are, and the more likely we could die earlier than we think.

So instead of laying in bed with your phone, or binging something on Netflix, go outside to a park or even just a Starbucks and sit there – just be around other humans at least for a little while; you never know, you make a friend or even get a date! Okay, that last part seems a little farfetched, but the whole point is you never know, and honestly, you have nothing to lose and a ton to gain.

Stay tuned.

Do You Have Patience??

On By inspiredodysseyIn Funny, UncategorizedLeave a comment

Worf Merry Man

On some real talk now – how many of you press the crap out of your phone screen, click the crap out of your mouse when something is buffering, or bite the crap out of your now, non-existent fingernails waiting for a text message, or ANY message, on all the different platforms???

I know for me personally, I have never been patient, at least these days I’m not. I feel like if I don’t have things “instantly,” I throw an inner tantrum or fit, and it ain’t pretty folks. Where do you think this comes from? Some would argue that we have succumbed to this whole instant-gratification culture, but damn, why the heck do those three dots on my iPhone cause me such stress???!!! ARGH!!!

Anyway, I am learning patience this weekend. I can’t find out about some money coming to me, whether or not my online classes will grant me Lifetime Access, or basically do anything till Monday. So tomorrow I’ll have to suffer. Or maybe not. I am not a gamer, so sitting in front of a Playstation for 12 hours tomorrow won’t work, and I have exactly $11.35 in the bank, so my butt ain’t going nowhere tomorrow either. Maybe I’ll watch the new movie Widows on HBO;  I read good things about it.

I wonder though, what do you guys do, besides distractions, to occupy yourselves? 

If you’re wondering how I am going to spend my evening, I will give you one word:

REDDIT

I’m serious. This is like the absolute blackest, of black holes on the internet. You know what the most fun is though? Messaging someone something utterly ridiculous. 

Case in point:

Message to a strange man on Reddit, Sent 11:01pm:

Dear haunted sweater enveloped by Byron,

I would rather talk to you Mr. Sweater, Byron seems scary. Well, not creepy scary, but good scary. The kind of scary that makes Mogwais eat chicken after midnight. So, hi haunted sweater, how are you? Did you ever do lifting for the people on Craigslist? Did they ever send you moisturized pictures of themselves??

Okay time to talk to Byron, he may get a complex that I am talking to you and not him.

Byron, dear sweet child, your entire post elicited one single thought:

“Captain, I protest, I am NOT a Merry Man!!”

I don’t know, maybe I think you look like Worf. And speaking of Klingons, I think what they did to them in the new Star Trek is appalling. I mean I would never pay for Star Trek, but I peeped a clip of Klingon sex and weird Klingon nipples and I think I could have been happy for the rest of my entire life if I never ever saw that. I would rather see Tribbles have sex because they have fertility efficiency. I would like to see efficient sex; porn looks too sloppy. They should have sex how Stewie taught Stu how to have sex. “And one, two, three, four, in and out there you go, take it in, take it out, take in, take it out, I am the monarch of the sea, the queen of the king’s navy…..” yeah you get the idea. I spend my time in 2005 reliving the revival of Family Guy. In fact, if it was 2005, I would have a hot body and wouldn’t be writing this, I would be getting laid like Tara Reid. And Tara Reid who is now in Sharknado 6: It’s About Time, with hot pink lipstick and no body. Sometimes I feel that she shouldn’t have a mouth either. I spend my time thinking about how women shouldn’t have mouths. But I digress, you can tell I watch a lot of terrible TV, and your post made no pop culture references and I am crapping all over this message to you by making them. So, I humbly, apologize.

I would also like to admit I opened a Word document to write this message. Being in school now has taught me that when you sit down to spend an hour to write down one big convoluted thought, it is best to open a Word document. I think the internet knows how hard we work on things and it evil-y decides that we shouldn’t progress in anything so it deletes all our work by freezing browsers and buffers from here to eternity. I think the internet is haunted. I think this Word document is haunted. I think the ghosts from that Thrift store made it to New York and is now haunting my words. I think my mouse is haunted. It’s clicking by itself for no reason.

As for your post, well, no amount of words can convalesce how incredibly talented you are with the gift of gab and am also now realizing that the only people who know what gift of gab is, are our age. I too, am getting older, and don’t want to be responsible. I will be honest and say I haven’t been responsible in about 15 years. I fart butterflies and pee rainbows too, in case you were wondering. It is very awkward in the bathroom on most days. My bowel movements are rose petals too, just in case you were wondering that as well.

Anyway, I hope we can become borderline obsessed friends.

But all jokes aside, in the real world, I have a real address, a real phone number, and a real Discord that I was kicked out of and no longer have.

I would love to type letters back and forth, but don’t object to handwriting all this nonsense on a scented floral stationary that smells like Elizabeth Taylor’s White Diamonds either.

Hope to hear from you soon friend,

Lynn

So there! I figured out how to have patience! Write ridiculously, long, nonsensical things to strangers on the internet!

And you know what? Even if he never messages me back, I don’t even care. I had an awesome, fun time writing it.

That’s all that matters right?

Life is so simple, yet so sweet.

Stay tuned.

Serendipity – What a Sweet Word

On By inspiredodysseyIn workLeave a comment

happy

First of all, I want to thank all the new followers for my little baby blog that I just started. Everyone has been so wonderful and supportive so I thought I would return the favor. Forums at Psych Central is the best place for help with anything you may be going through, whether it be relationships, mental health, or you just want company that is supportive. It has been a wealth of knowledge for me over the years, and the people there and staff are so helpful if you’re struggling and need help. You can also visit PsychCentral.com to access hundreds of quizzes and articles to see if you suffer from bipolar, depression or anything else.

I will be honest and say it’s been a rough year. I had just crawled out of a hole I made for myself after a blowout manic episode that lasted longer than it should have and soon realized that it buried me under a mountain of debt which I found out today was $22,000!!!! – LIKE WTF???? Jesus, if you’re out there help me, please. Seriously, OUCH.

But that brings me back to my favorite word: Serendipity. Now, I am stealing that from that amazing movie with John Cusack and Kate Bekingsdale, BUT I feel my life has been littered with all these little serendipitous events over the years. First of all, I need to thank God for the fact that some error somewhere eliminated all the hospital bills from all the hospitalizations and doctors that I went through – seriously – some cosmic hand played a part in all that. And for those of you who don’t believe, I will say this much: I am not and never was a religious person in my life, but spending 10 months, (5 months of that in isolation), I found comfort in the only book I was allowed to keep with me: The New Testament, NOT the Bible, just The New Testament. People can argue that religion has turned into such a dirty word, (not sure why really), but you don’t have to be religious to appreciate a positive message of hope, which that book gave me. In fact, there are certain things that just NEED to be appreciated, like the one that was shared with me just this morning:

The Guest House

This being human is a guest house.
Every morning a new arrival.A joy, a depression, a meanness,
some momentary awareness comes
As an unexpected visitor.Welcome and entertain them all!
Even if they’re a crowd of sorrows,
who violently sweep your house
empty of its furniture,
still treat each guest honorably.
He may be clearing you out
for some new delight.The dark thought, the shame, the malice,
meet them at the door laughing,
and invite them in.Be grateful for whoever comes,
because each has been sent
as a guide from beyond.
~RUMI

Thank you, fellow bipolar survivor, for exposing me to such a powerful, and comforting poem. I always knew that Rumi was amazing, and finding out about more of his hidden treasures always brings a tear to my eye.

So for you that don’t know, serendipity is this:

Serendipity
NOUN
  1. the occurrence and development of events by chance in a happy or beneficial way.

  2. “a fortunate stroke of serendipity” ·

  3. [more]
  4. synonyms:
  5. chance · happy chance · accident · happy accident · fluke · luck · good luck · good fortune · fortuity · fortuitousness · providence · coincidence · happy coincidence

So far, I have been a wonderful beneficiary of “happy chance” especially with all the car accidents, crazy circumstances, hospitalizations and drunken debaucheries I have experienced in my life. I have had a very exciting life, but would I call it exciting now? Or would I call it just recklessness, and SO reckless that I am lucky to be alive? It’s weird how things come into your mind as you approach 40.

So my serendipity for today:

If I didn’t have a horrible day and breakdown yesterday and exposed my vulnerability to my very wonderful, but very worried best friend, I would have never changed Debt Consolidation companies today, saved about $100 a month, and now possibly have $2000 coming to me from a Savings Account that would be owed to me from my old Debt Consolidation company. SURE the smart thing would be to put ALL of that money into the new company, but I am going to play it smart. I am going to keep some emergency cash at home in a safe, (it’s funny I knew this was a great idea and everybody should do it, and I even have the safe but no money, lol), and keep the rest in my account for emergencies.

I am also going to start my writing career up again by joining this site:

Writer’s Work – $47

Now, I know you’ve probably seen their ads on Facebook, (if you’re even on there, I know most people are anti-social media these days), AND there are a lot of people about there who are making “reviews” and calling it a scam. Now, from personal research on this hear me out: For $47 you get a Lifetime Membership to ALL their services, which is expensive and big bucks to a lot of people, (especially me), but is it worth it? Well, they do have a money-back guarantee in 30 days, so you can easily just try it out, but WHY all the negative reviews?

First and foremost: people that sign up don’t put in the work. Like with any career services, or in this case a “freelance writer start-up,” you are going to have to put in the work. Now, I know this may seem like an obvious thing, but the fact of the matter is, in this world people want $60000 a year handed to them on a platter – I know, I used to work in Human Resources, and I saw it time and time again. And I hate to say it, but all those negative reviews I read sounded like lazy, unmotivated people who just didn’t like that they weren’t making $20 an hour instantly. It takes work to build up a profile and put yourself out there to companies. In essence, you’re selling yourself, and if you aren’t good at that, then maybe you shouldn’t invest in something that you think will GIVE you everything. It’s such common sense.

BUT…….

The bad thing is: they sell you on the idea that you can get everything instantly. I get it, totally their fault, but they are out to make money. But what people don’t realize is for $47 you’re getting a Lifetime membership to a RIDICULOUS amount of software and services to help you start your freelance writing career. There are a lot of negatives like they don’t have the best job boards, or their profile creation tool is weak, but come on, you’re paying for Netflix $156 a year to do what? Binge-watch shows and movies when you could be making extra money?

And the reviews that got me the MOST were the ones saying; “Read my review on WritersWork, I have the most unbiased and honest review out there.” Do you know what happened when I clicked on it? Within 30 seconds of reading this review, I was immediately directed to a site SELLING WRITER SERVICES. Haha! Talk about unbiased! And the most hilarious thing was when I closed the window and reopened the review again, after 30 seconds I was directed to buy their services, again!!!! So I had to keep closing and opening to read the whole damn thing! Why did I bother? God knows. Haha.

Anyway, maybe serendipity will work in your favor on this beautiful Saturday afternoon.

Maybe you’ll get the help you need at PsychCentral, or maybe you’ll go the route I’m going with Writer’sWork.

Whatever your dreams are, remember the only one standing in your way is you.

I learned that the hard way.

Stay Tuned.

 

 

Are You Happy In Life??

On By inspiredodysseyIn LifeLeave a comment

rain

Do you think you have the perfect career? Are you happy in your relationship(s)? Is there something missing in your life where you find yourself constantly searching, but can never find it?

Welcome to my world.

Hi, my name is Lynn and I am a writer in my 30s, from New York. Recently, I discovered that writing is mostly a hobby, and not really a career path, so I am in school for Business Management to try and figure it all out. It’s like that lightbulb went off when I noticed how everybody has jumped on the bandwagon of “freelance writer,” and I realized the market it just way too saturated with this type of profession. I think when Carrie Bradshaw showcased her life on “Sex and the City” every woman in New York was wondering: “In what universe can you write a couple of times a week for a no-name newspaper, and afford $500 shoes?” Trust me, I’ve lived in this city my whole life, and that crap is just straight-up fiction.

And what about relationships? Well, I am happy to say that it will be almost a decade that my best friend and I are still together. Why “best friend” and not “boyfriend?” Well, he is too old to be a “boy” friend, and secondly, I have always wanted to keep my options open; I am a “lots of options” type girl. But over the years, I realized, this is the guy for me and everything else is just an extra – and extra not being sleeping with a bunch of men on the side, just having an inordinate number of male friends, (and steamy co-writer partners), that most people don’t have the luxury of having. So you see, what I have works for both of us and works well. He is about an hour away by car, and I think I am going to keep our living situations this way until we both retire, then we can get married and grow old together. My set-up is pretty sweet, and I have to say I have no regrets, even though “I have no regrets” has turned into some new-age fix-it-all for modern-day problems and is now totally a cliché thing to say. But aren’t some cliché’s still relevant today? And to me, the biggest cliché that’s running around these days is: “online dating works.” I think if you survey all the people who are online dating right now, about 80% of them will tell you it’s crap turned over twice and all over your shoe. I will be talking about online dating more in this blog later on though because I think it’s such a fascinating subject.

This brings me to you guys.

Is it just me, or is it that with all this technology, all these great ways to meet new people, and all the advancements we’re making, are driving human beings apart? Are all these digital interactions killing us? Does it all leave you with an unsatisfied feeling at the end of the day, even though things are going well?

I think as a whole, we are losing our humanity. I was talking to my friend the other day and we were discussing the term “binging.” Wasn’t binging a negative term described in eating disorders? Why did such an ugly term become commonplace? Don’t we realize its unhealthy to binge, even though we think, “well it’s just Netflix?” A series isn’t made for the purpose of binging, well at least years ago it wasn’t.  I can remember every episode of “Star Trek the Next Generation,” “Knight Rider,” and “The A-Team,” because I had to wait a whole week to watch each episode. Since everything is available to stream and I was guilty of binging “Battlestar Galactica” a few years ago, I can honestly report to you, I have no frickin’ idea what half those episodes were about. Do you see what I mean?

It’s unhealthy.

We’re unhealthy.

So, what do we do??

Since this is my first blog post, what do you think we should do to make ourselves more human, more satisfied with life?

I totally would love to hear some of your ideas.

Stay tuned.