Do you ever feel like technology is progressing at an incredible rate and it’s impossible to keep up? Don’t get me wrong, I love technology, “but not as much as you, you see”. I was thinking that we should have a day where we do things the way we used to do them, like when we were kids (for those born in the early eighties or late seventies) and call it Anti-Technology Day.
Below are a few examples of things we would do on Anti-Technology Day:
1.) Write physical checks when buying groceries or paying bills instead of using your debit card or online bill pay. You rarely see people busting out the checkbook anymore, it’s like a lost art. I bet our kids won’t even know how to write out a check when they grow up. So on Anti-Technology Day see how many checks you can write out in one day. When you get gas, when you go out to lunch, when paying bills, go get your favorite pen and start writing checks. I can see it now, people will walk into a convenience store and say “do you accept third-party out of state travelers checks?”
2.) Stop texting, emailing, twittering, instant messaging, and leaving messages on Facebook or Myspace for the day and instead pick up your phone each time you want to communicate and call the person. I know you may use up a ton of minutes if you communicate as much as most people normally do using all of the other methods I mentioned, but it will be nice to actually hear friendly voices frequently for a day, the gesture will be more personable and a nice change for a day I think.
3.) Write somebody a letter. It can be about anything really, tell someone you love them, or are thinking about them, or are thankful for them. After you write it, put it in a envelope, write their address on the front and place a stamp on it, then put it in the mailbox. People don’t do this anymore, I think people are too busy doing the things mentioned in #2 above. Actually getting a letter in the mail would be a nice surprise, it would make getting the mail a little more exciting I think as well.
4.) Memorize something. I think people, including myself, often rely so much on technology to remember things such as phone numbers, addresses, even peoples last names, birthdays, poems, and scripture verses because our phones or computers have memory and so we let them remember for us. So on Anti-Technology Day you are going to use your brain a little bit more than usual and memorize something. It can be anything, but take the time to really memorize it. My high school english teacher would always say “repetition is the key to understanding.” Maybe memorize your grandparents phone number and address, or maybe memorize a few of your co-workers birthdays, or a Bible verse you read that day.
I’m sure I could come up with more, but I would like some suggestions here, if you have any others for Anti-Technology Day leave them in the comments below.
“Why do you love me? Why do you need me? Always and forever… We met in a chat room, now our love can fully bloom… Sure the world wide web is great, but you, you make me salivate… Yes, I love technology, but not as much as you, you see… But still, I love technology… Always and forever.” (Napoleon Dynamite)