Farming instead of Facebook

Recently, my youngest sister was looking at a picture of me at my going away party at UW. I smiled from the rooftop of Sigma Phi Epsilong in my stylish blue cap sleeved shirt and Gap overalls.

"Oh fun, was it a theme party?" she asked.

"Um, no, why?" I responded.

"Why were you wearing overalls then?" She replied.

My sister, being 9 years younger, did not believe that overalls were actually in fashion and innocently thought we were having some sort of country themed going away party. Recently, trying to make space for baby two, I sadly parted with said Gap overalls and donated them. I now think I should have kept them, not for fashion but for pragmatic reasons.

Let me explain. In this modern world of conveniences we congratulate ourselves on all of the tools we've developed as a society to make our lives easier. Let the machines do the work and we'll kick back and relax, right? I would argue that our lives are busier and more stressful than the lives of farmers in "days of yore" who worked sun up to sun down. In fact, Kenny and I call eachother farmers now while we work into the night to manage a household and careers.

Our day starts early and ends late. I try to wake up at 5am or before (although lately I've been hitting the alarm off in my sleep) so that I can be to work at 6am. Farmers get up at 5 to feed the chickens and milk the cows. I'd rather be getting some fresh air with some barn animals (fresh until the cows fart at least) than logging into a computer. Regardless, I rather enjoy my early mornings of solitude, keeping up with the East Coast territory I work. Meanwhile, Kenny is wrangling the kids while his blackberry buzzes with requests and expectations. I think he might prefer sheep sheering to "dealing with douchebags" as he says. But every morning the kids are fed, dressed, and out the door by 7:30 or 8:00.

We work all day at our desks, on our smartphones, landlines, voicemails, emails. We have expectations from above and the need to make money. We are tilling the land and growing crops. If, by crops, you mean software that manages expense reports and by tilling the land you mean Webinars.

Of course I have the good fortune to be done with work early as I started early. I'd love to say I go enjoy a good novel, pick up my kids early every day, get the house tidied etc. Some days, I do pick up the kids or tidy the house. Often I am going to the country store (aka Safeway, Bed Bath and Beyond) to procure items for the homestead or getting in some excercise because I sit at a desk all day. I pick up the kids at 4:30 or 5:00 and we go home, feed them dinner, figure out dinner for Kenny and I, do dishes, make lunches, do laundry, pick up toys, take out toys, bathe again because Maya found an uncapped marker, read books and get the kids to bed. We often eat dinner late and proceed to fold laundry, catch up with emails, clean a toilet, go through mail, pay bills etc. By the time 9pm rolls around I finally get a post-workout shower in and have a few minutes with the kindle. During all of this there is access, there is a need to get on Snapfish to order photos, there is a need to do online research for this and that.

Life is still busy, and somehow modern conveniences have created more work. The cost of all of these modern conveniences causes the need for a dual income. If we really were farmers, our workout would be built into our work. Riding a horse, walking the fields, hand laundering, think about the forearm workout you get from milking a cow! (Just don't milk the bull). If nobody could get a hold of you by email, and they were patient enough to tell you something when they see you next, we could spend time interacting face to face. We may not know everything about everyone, but our brains could keep track of life without assistance from a smartphone and Outlook calendar. How much time do you spend in front of a screen? What would happen if you didn't have any screentime for a week outside of absolutely necessary screentime required for work? What could you accomplish?

Thus, I wish I could trade in my iPhone for my Gap overalls. I'd keep a notebook in one pocket, wear a watch, carry a couple of pictures of my kids, and reduce eyestrain. I'd probably be more efficient, if not a little out of touch. I'd miss some Facebook posts (I wonder if there is a statistic about how many people have posted pictures of their feet and a drink while relaxing? Are you really relaxing if you're on the internet?). Maybe life would go on if I missed some political opinions and happy hour "check-ins".

I can't wear overalls and I can't hand launder my clothes or pluck a chicken from my yard (primarily because I don't have a chicken, I have a cat, and she'll be pissed if I pluck her hair). I really can't even go computerless because I have a job to do. But I can do a week without Facebook. Its become a bad habit to check FB when I'm bored, waiting, listening to a conference call, whatever. I think I need to disconnect for a bit. So, until Wednesday August 17 I will be unavailable on Facebook. I'm removing the app from my iPhone for now, and I'll see my FB friends in a week.

Off to the fields...