How to make my social life less virtual and more real.

Last night, I got a reminder of how much gets lost in the translation of text messages. I was talking to Mk via a Skype video chat. This is the first time we’d actually “talked” in a while and it was because of a misunderstanding regarding the statement “we need to talk.” For me, it meant we need to have a serious conversation about something which might be uncomfortable. For him, it meant we need to have a verbal conversation either by phone or in person. The fact that neither of us realized the other had a different expectation of what should happen when Mk said that meant that we had several awkward moments over the last few weeks. For as much as I love real time access texting provides, it’s also tricky. And if it’s the main means of communication in a relationship, one must keep that in mind.

So upon State Department recommendations, I’m not taking any of my electronic gadgets nor will I be logging on to anything. Let’s see how I deal with 5 days of no tech.

Forget one’s phone charger while on vacation. It’s non-optional when the battery runs out.

Since my phone isn’t allowed to roam, I spent all day today unconnected. It was interesting. I don’t get that much online anyway but I’m always checking (ADHD bad habit). It was nice to be away from it today.

I started thinking about this goal again recently because I can get caught up here at 43T and with StumbledUpon and with my school work, Lumosity and Rosetta Stone. So I’m going to set some limits here and focus on spending more time outside, doing things in Korea and seeing living, breathing humans.

For Monday – Friday:
Rosetta Stone: no more than a hour
Lumosity: 1 thing of daily training (probably no more than 30 minute)
43T: 30 minutes
E-mails: no more than 30 minutes. Write the long e-mails on the weekends.
Baseball, banking and other things: no more than 30 minutes

All my link in points (work, smart phone, home) will count and I’ll catch up as I need to on the weekend.

Ugh, and I can’t put this goal back up until I complete one of the others… I guess it’s not that bad when my life is so full I can’t add more.

So, not much on my social life, but I did make my life less virtual today and managed to ignore my android even during my quiet lunch today.

As I find myself missing my friends in Germany and the States, I must acknowledge that phone calls and e-mails are not the same as meeting for lunch or coffee. I want to go for brunch tomorrow; to have a lovely get together where we catch up on the last week or two while sipping cappuccino. I love that we have the opportunity to keep up, just not the method.

I’m headed to a Thanksgiving lunch with some people from my division. Looking forward to not being by myself today.

Will also be headed out to snowboard on Sunday with a tour company. A new friend from work is coming as well. Hoping to make some new friends.

most of my friends are in Europe and the States, I spend more time on the computer than I should. Much harder to meet people to hang out with here if I’m locked in my apartment playing on the internet. Will focus on meeting more people quickly as the holidays are coming and I don’t want to have my lack of local friends inflict seasonal depression on me.