Screen-time

I am spending less time on my phone -- at least, according to my phone.
I haven't actually checked, but I suspect that the phone app is likely one of the least used apps on my phone. Perhaps it would be better if I referred to it as my cellular device or my distraction from living or as something other than my phone.

Since I generally have one book that I read on the Kindle app, some of my daily time is spent there.
There are a few game apps that I play everyday, plus a few of the NYT games like Wordle, Connections, and Letter Boxed.
I have been spending less time on Facebook and Instagram and a little more time on Substack.

I think that deciding to wear a watch has reduced my screen time a bit. I don't really know why I ever need to know what time it is. I suppose it is an ingrained life habit. And I don't believe we really check to see what time it is, but we check to see how much time we have until ... whatever thing we expect to do next in life. How long until dinner, how long before we leave, how long until the game starts, etc.
By not checking my phone for the time, I am not distracted to check on messages or notifications or other updates that I would have just skipped or waited until later to read.
Opening anything is inviting the cellular black hole to suck you into the inescapable virtual void where you lose minutes, or even hours, of your day and life.

Having a smart phone does give me access to so much information. I use it for gardening info, recipe ideas, weather information, GPS guidance, updated news, and plenty of other things. I definitely don't want to go back to not having one. 
However, I also see that these ubiquitous devices can be a major distraction from actually living our lives and can be very isolating for people that truly need an actual community of people around them.

I am going to continue to limit and reduce my dependence on my phone and the distraction that it often creates. I have a few educational apps that I'll continue to use, plus my reading (Kindle) app. Using social apps to connect me to people that I couldn't connect with otherwise are good things. Using those same social apps as a substitute for connecting with people that I can have actual connections with might not be so great.
Less screen time.
More life.

John