lesson 3: toilet diaries

last week, in my haste of trying to do too many things at once, i had an "accident". my phone, which is frequently stored in my back right pocket, had a collision with the inside of a toilet bowl. i was quick to remove it, turn it off, wrap it in toilet paper, unwrap it, throw it under the hand-dryer in the public bathroom i was in, brought it home and submerged it in a gallon of rice and silica packets, and waited. for 24 hours. i actually waited 26, just to be safe. 

as someone permanently attached to my phone, i started thinking about my next 24 hours. the calls i had to make, my 14-minute walk to and from the office, the ride upstate where i would end up being incommunicado. i semi-panicked. i was soooo busy, how would i cope? but this 24-hour period taught me a few things:

1. where there's a will, there's a way. i borrowed a phone, used google hangouts, skype, slack calls, and texting through iMessage on my computer. #resourceful
2. walking down the street with no phone, and no music was oddly refreshing and peaceful. 
3. people will still find you. you will still find people. you can even talk face to face!
4. it's refreshing to look up when you walk. you never know what you'll see. 
5. slow down. be patient. feel comfortable being a little uncomfortable. 
6. maybe pick a day or a half-day each week (or more!) where you fully disconnect and just enjoy being in the moment. we are so focused on documenting what we're doing, creating instagram-envy, responding quickly to those around us, but it's also ok, and healthy, to unplug sometimes. 

photo cred: jackie stauffer @ flatiron building (nyc)