I recently read a blog post by Dr. James Frankel, managing director of SoundTree. Dr. Frankel discussed his experiences going to an "unplugged" concert, and how although the music was all performed without any electronic help (amplification, instruments, etc.), about everything else that occurred in his life that night had an electronic aspect to it, from the purchase of the tickets to creating dinner plans. It got me thinking about what life would be like "unplugged."

We spend so much time glued to our electronics-computers, iPods, cell phones-that sometimes we miss the opportunity to enjoy the beauty of life. So many of us are so always plugged in that there isn't a minute we're not communicating with someone, usually electronically. So I got to thinking-would there be a noticeable difference in my life if I committed to taking a certain amount of time each day and having "unplugged" time?

By "unplugged" time I don't mean just not using electronics. I mean literally unplugging them. Computer in the off position, iPod turned off and in the drawer, cell phone turned completely off (not just on silent). Thinking about it at first, I think to myself, "what would I do with myself?!" Then I come up with a few things I've been meaning to do for a while but haven't gotten the opportunity to, because I always get distracted by a text message, Twitter update, or Facebook notification:


  • Read more articles from my Poppy's book, Mosaic

  • Read articles from the dozens of music education journals I've received over the past year

  • Catch up on reading for some of my classes

  • Work out, in some way (walking, running, lifting weights, shooting a basketball... SOMETHING to get me off my lazy butt!)

  • Practice! (What a concept?!)


And the list goes on and on. So here's my goal: thirty minutes a day, five days a week. My initial idea was to do thirty minutes every day, but after thinking about it and talking it over with a friend, I realized that it's better to start smaller and work my way up. My ending goal will be something to the effect of a one-hour block each day, which may require some modifications to my schedule, but I'm going to try to make it work. For now, though, I'm going to start small, and during the school week.

I will, of course, keep you posted with updates on the progress of my journey into the land of the unplugged with (electronic) blog posts every so often! :)

Wish me luck!