John

Last year I fasted from the internet for lent. I think it was the first time since probably 1995 that I had ever really gone without. At the time, I was spending between 1 and 3+ hours every night after work online. Usually I'd turn on the computer when I got home, start by checking my email, then look at the clock to find it was time for bed. No myspace, IM, onion, SI, email or other unmentionables for 5 weeks. I thought without the internet I would be very bored each night. At first I did feel very disconnected; but as the weeks passed I began to realize I had been paying my cable company $30 a month to steal part of my life every day. I rediscovered the joy of spending time with friends and family doing not much in particular, reading, and well, yes, television too. After lent I found I used the internet so infrequently (seriously) I could no longer justify paying for it. I pulled the plug on my internet access all together.