Hello all fellow parents... it is now officially Time. To. Unplug. Maybe it was when I watched my 2-year-old at the park try to "swipe" a block of wood, thinking it was like an "iPad." Maybe it was the feeling like I was never quite focused with my kids. Maybe it was the night where I was tweeting and texting in my dreams.
I have been unplugging weekly for the past year for what my family calls our "technology shabbats," and it has truly changed my life. I have tried to do this halfheartedly since 2005, but between Twitter and Facebook and now Pinterest, something had to be done.
Unplugging each Friday night with my family is now the day that I rushed towards each week. The 24 hours not online truly resets my soul. It has become my favorite day of the week. I feel like a better mother, wife, person on Saturdays. And this other thing happens that I didn't expect. When you unplug, Time. Slows. Down. What's the one day of the week you want to feel long? Saturday. Suddenly you get four days in one.
And another thing happens: by Saturday night sundown when we go back online, we appreciate technology in this whole new way.
My husband Ken Goldberg and I rewrote Allen Ginsberg's "Howl" as a manifesto for our need to "unplug" and then I turned it into a film. You can watch the film below.
If you need a digital detox too, join me this Friday March 23-24 for The National Day of Unplugging. Take the pledge en masse.