SEVEN DAYS OFFLINE AND I'VE GROWN A SOUL
Today marks seven whole days off social media. I don’t think it will surprise anyone when I say I’ve experienced only positive things… and I have, unfortunately, become one of those incredibly annoying people who now wants to convert everyone else.
I did this purely because I knew I was wasting a disgusting amount of time on my phone, aimlessly scrolling and consuming content that either infuriated me or actively made me dumber. I love a good meme, but four hours on a Monday night watching raccoons and cats can only bring so much joy before you start to wonder whether the payoff of a loud nose exhale is worth the wasted potential of actually bettering your brain… and, by extension, your life (wow, profound).
I am addicted to my phone. In the same way I was addicted to binge eating or smoking. Those habits were kicked, so I knew I had a fire in my gut and the very real capacity to shift this one too.
My first step, without really realising it, was getting rid of my iPhone.
I’ve had Apple phones since I was fourteen. Trust me, I was in the cult. I understand the disdain for Androids. I was one of those “I don’t understand Androids, they’re confusing” people. The turning point came when iOS 26 dropped. The liquid glass bullshit made me physically recoil. That, and the fact that for the last decade I’ve had zero agency over how long my alarm snoozes for. Nine minutes is fucking stupid.
Another thing quietly enraging me was how massive my phone was, so I opted for the Motorola Razr. Partly because I was never allowed to have the OG Razr in primary school, but mostly because it folds in half and becomes smaller than women’s pockets… an astonishing engineering feat.
While my Android phone is objectively way cooler than my iPhone, I don’t reach for it as much. I do what I need to do and then put it down. Sure, there’s still some boredom doom-scrolling, but nowhere near the levels I hit under the Apple vice.
Finishing work for the year and spending time with the love of my life in Adelaide had me feeling a certain type of way. The birds were chirping. I was actually looking at the world around me. I realised that working from home, as good as it’s been, has stopped me from smelling the roses a bit.
Being outdoors, going to museums, picking strawberries, and sitting in circles with intellectually stellar humans (no TVs in the way) genuinely altered my brain chemistry. So much so that I felt almost scared to go home and get sucked back into technological sludge. I decided that when I landed back in Brisbane, I’d make a farewell post, delete the apps, and block the web browsers.
I cannot thank my one-week-ago self enough.
I feel calmer. My eyes don’t hurt. I’m happier. For the first time in a long while, I feel whimsy. I feel like I could open my window, sing, and birds would land on my finger… all because I’m no longer reading what a white male boomer thinks about feminism.
I’m conscious that a lot of news lives on social media, and I don’t want to be ignorant of what’s happening in the world. But I also no longer have the energy to read what other people think about what’s happening. I simply do not care.
Instead, I read my Daily Aus email every morning, absorb the terror, and move on. It’s been genuinely life-altering. I recommend this to literally anyone who has ever lived. Please, try it.
So what am I doing with all this spare time? (Because, yes… when you’re not glued to your phone, you do actually have time.)
I’ve been writing, crafting, and studying. Me. Self-studying. Me!
I watched a few videos about giving yourself a personal curriculum and thought, absolutely yes. The one subject I was never taught in high school, and the one that has made me feel embarrassingly dense in social settings, is Geography. I didn’t have it at school (what the actual fuck), and because I chose music and drama, I also never did senior history.
For decades, I’ve been clueless about the world and what it contains. I don’t want to feel that way anymore.
So I started by compiling a list of every country in the world which was not an easy feat, given there are… opinions… and I’m writing mini reports on each one. In the past week I’ve covered Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Andorra, Angola, and Antigua & Barbuda.
And yes, before that last country, I used an Oxford comma.
I didn’t know what that was either, so I researched it and wrote a two-page report on that. And when I say “write,” I mean write… pen and paper. Everything I learn, I write down. It turns out people were right: that’s how retention works. My hand hurts a little, but my soul does not. Plus, it was the perfect excuse to finally buy a fountain pen.
My brain genuinely feels larger. My curiosity is growing at an alarming rate. I don’t see myself returning to Facebook or Instagram any time soon… maybe ever. I’ll probably log in, post about Open Terp Night, and log the fuck back out.
I realised I don’t really care what other people are up to. And I don’t think that’s rude. The people who matter are around me, or a phone call away. And I can just… ask?
I woke up this morning genuinely excited to sit at my desk and learn about the next country. I’m wringing my hands with glee over how smart, cool, and alive I feel.
Turns out, my brain just needed some air.
And the funniest part of all this is that I don’t even feel a flicker of anxiety about not posting this blog entries link on Facebook. There was a time when that would’ve felt unthinkable… like if I didn’t broadcast it, did it even exist? But I genuinely don’t care who reads this. There are 22 people subscribed; they’ll see it, and that’s enough. This wasn’t written for engagement, algorithms, or strangers with opinions. It was written because I wanted to write it. And that feels like the most quietly radical thing I’ve done all week.
Wishing you all an exceptional week, or perhaps just an average one. Average is perfectly fine.
Song recommendation of the week: 'Second Hand News' by Fleetwood Mac
🎵CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO MY SONG OF THE WEEK🎵