Our digital lifestyle

II enjoy working on a computer, it is a challenge that is exciting and fulfilling for me. It is a pleasure to take the time to fix a problem and to maintain a good personal computer system so that I won't develop any troubles in the future. There is also a sense of freedom in being able to access the internet on a high speed connection and have access to any kind of information in any way shape or form at my finger tips. However, there is a flip side to all this good news. Sometimes I fall into the trap of allowing this pastime to become a time consuming activity that keeps me away from other experiences in my life.

More and more people these days are in the same situation and they are getting into the habit of living a good part of their lives in front of a computer screen. There is an explosion of activity and life on the internet. People can do so much and live almost complete separate lives from their everyday reality. On the internet, you can find websites that feature blogs where people enter regular entries in a journal style that documents their daily lives. These sites have photos, contacts, music and as much information about themselves as they want to provide. People on the internet are also talking to each other through instant messaging services where you can chat with individuals in your town, city, and country or from any part of the world in real time. If you are set up for it you can even use a headset and a web camera to watch the person on the other end as you talk to them as if they were sitting in your house. This activity can become addicting and people can develop a whole new set of relationships and a lifestyle that is based on a digital lifeline. Of course it can also be useful and keep family and friends in touch.

I am like most people when I seek relief from being on the computer for hours - I go to the living room to sit in front of the television set. What a joke. After staring at a monitor for an hour or two I simply move to another screen to relieve my strained eyes. The problem with all this is that we are not challenging ourselves mentally or physically. When we sit in front of the computer or television, we look for something to entertain us. There is not much thinking involved. When I go through a routine like this in the evening, I can feel my legs are restless and aching from the hours of sitting and doing nothing. My back is sore and my body is weak. It is as if my body was complaining about the fact that I did not do anything physical for a long period of time.

More and more young people are leading this kind of lifestyle. When you go out into the community, there are fewer and fewer children or youth who want to spend time outdoors. Why should they when they can chat with local friends online and maintain relationships with others who are far away. In a way they can live their lives on a screen.

Our digital lifestyle does have advantages. We can communicate with others over great distances and we can do so intimately and regularly. Computers and digital technology also requires a great deal of skill and ability in order to navigate and operate systems, electronic devices and software programs. It keeps our minds working and develops our problem solving skills and memory. However, we are living in a period where more and more people in general are getting over weight and sluggish because of this lifestyle. Allowing technology and machines to entertain us in a way opens the door to our being controlled to a great degree and losing our freedom of movement and social contact in reality

I can compare my life as a young boy to someone who is growing up today. Back home in Attawapiskat during the 1980s there was no internet or electronic technology to entertain us. We had to rely on our friends and our families to fill our days with activity and excitement. This meant going outdoors to breathe the fresh air and run around the community and communicate and interact with people on the street and in their homes.

In recent years, I find myself withdrawing from the outdoors more and more to stay close to the comfort of the computer or television. When I do break from these digital monitors I feel a sense of freedom and ease. I try to take the time now to go outdoors to be close to the forest, the water and under the open sky. I am also rediscovering reading as it is a less stressful form of entertainment and one that I find more fulfilling than a bright flashy screen with blinding type.

A monitor can give you the world but standing outdoors can give you so much freedom. Nowadays I try to stay aware of the amount of time I spend in front of a computer or TV and I make an effort to just sit quietly and watch the world go by in real time. It's time for us all to get up from the computer and television and just head outside. Leave the cell phone, PDA, laptop, game boy, play station and mp3 player at home. Don't be shocked by the sound, it's only the birds singing. 

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