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Last updateFri, 29 Apr 2016 3pm

Don’t be afraid of the dark

I’ve heard there are people who periodically put all of their electronic devices into a locked drawer for a week or two – just to take a break. Frankly that never made much sense to me. Why not use the items you have? Then there are the folks who swear that they never watch television except each September’s Iditarod, Alaska’s annual long-distance dog sled race.

Living alone, some days the television or radio provides the background noise of my life. Most days I treasure the various types of connections to the world provided by the cell phone, telephone, laptop, internet, DVD player, MP3 player, and Kindle tablet. I exalt in frequent checks of email accounts and rapid fire Google searches to prove and disprove odd bits of information and to find morsels of data that have slipped my memory. 

I’d never voluntarily turn away from all of that information and activity. In fact, I’ve been accused of being addicted to my collection of electronic devices. My electronic fast was unintentional, caused by a lengthy power outage that had me rationing and budgeting battery time on the laptop, tablet and cell phone and hunting for outlets each time I left the house so I could recharge. 

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