Today was a very strange day at work. Our connectivity to the world was down pretty much all day. That means no phone service to the outside world, no email to the outside world and no internet connection. Yikes!As it turns out there was a construction mishap near our building which caused a Qwest fiberoptic cable to be cut. In the late afternoon we finally had phones back but it wasn't until after 6pm that our email and internet connection were working again.
These days it's very hard to go without connectivity and still get your work done. It felt so odd. I found myself having to think out of the box for different ways to get things done. And all day long I was adding to a list of things to do "after we are connected again." I felt out of my element a bit. Sort of discombobulated if you will. Some people remarked that they were actually getting work done without the phone ringing constantly. I heard others saying it felt like a snow day. On a snow day not everyone makes it to the office so you don't have the full resources and expectation of communication with other people in their offices.
We don't think about all the ways we rely on the web for everyday tasks now. Transferring money in your bank account; ordering prescription refills; checking the weather report; looking up a bus schedule; getting directions; posting pictures to share; emailing friends and family. The list goes on and on.
I'm a big fan of Web 2.0 applications. So some of my notes and information that I use on a daily basis reside on the web. I had to do without those resources today. It wasn't horrible, and I wouldn't mind if this happened once a month. But I think I would prefer that it were scheduled and not a surprise. I was thankful that I didn't have any critical needs that couldn't be met in another way. And may I say, Yay for cell phones!
If you found yourself unexpectedly without internet connectivity for a full day, what would you do? Something fun I hope.
Now that we have the internet back I think I'll go look up a bus schedule to take me home.
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3 comments:
I was without Internet connectivity for two weeks on vacation. Actually, I could have accessed, for a fee, Yahoo! through my cell phone, and the hotels had Internet connectivity at $3.95/minute (NO THANK YOU).
I was a calmer, happier, less anxious person for that two weeks.
Good for you Christina! Those are the best kinds of vacations. If only they could happen more often...
Carm
My "without internet connectivity" experience was when I was in Mexico on a mission trip. I didn't even have use of my cell phone. It certainly allowed for a greater focus on the Lord!
And, surprisingly enough, I wasn't too eager to check messages when we returned to a cell phone accessible area; guess I got used to the idea of peace and quiet...what a concept! :-)
Colette
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