Unplugged Vacation

 

        It's raining outside right now and I'm glad to be inside our comfortable little home away from home. I finished washing the dishes which are drying on the counter.  The rain is pattering against the window and dripping off the apples on the tree outside our window. I have a small load of laundry in the washing machine down the hall.

        This is the 23rd trip C and I have made to Door County.  In the beginning, this was a badly needed break when both of us worked full time. When we first started coming here, reliable cell phone coverage was only available in the southern part of the peninsula. There was Wi-Fi access at the B&B we stayed at, but it wasn't available every where. We were, to a small extent, cut off from the outside world for one week and one day while we stayed here. It was nice to get a break from work, but also from checking messages and email all the time. C would bring a guitar and play sometimes in our room and sometimes in the common area. I would being a stack of books and some sort of needlework project. It was a time to slow down and relax.

        Things have changed since then. C is retired and I work part time so we longer need a break from full time work. We have call phone coverage almost everywhere on the peninsula and Wi-Fi is reliable and also available in most places. We can be just as connected as we are at home if we choose to be. 

        Why do we keep coming here? Although we haven't explored all of the peninsula we have been around most of it. We find ourselves going back to the same parks, the same stores and the same restaurants. Do we really need to keep taking this vacation every year?

        I think that there is some benefit from getting away every once in a while. It's good to breathe some fresh air, walk some trails and play some minigolf. I also think that this is a good place to unplug.  I don't know about anyone else but I personally use my devices too much. I realized  this on Sunday when I sat on our deck with my iPad and a book. My intent was to watch two videos that I wanted to watch, then read my book. What I wound up doing was watching the videos and then working on Latin lessons on the iPad. I never got to the book. 

        Next year, assuming we come back, I think we should have an unplugged vacation. Minimal use of phones and other technology. Maximum use of knitting needles, pens, pencils paper, books and instruments. That would be a vacation worth taking.