By Richard K. Munro
Knowing when it is time to “unplug” -get off electronic devices is really a question of temperance and moderation. For one thing one has to make an effort (I certainly do) to be physically active. When I go for walks or swim I never carry music or the phone.
I unplug or leave my phone charging in the bedroom. I never use my phone or have it on when we are having dinner (breakfast is different) or have guests. When I go out to dinner with my wife I never have my phone out.
I have a smart phone and I use it a lot every day, however. I use it to listen to podcasts, to read the WSJ, to listen to audible books and to study languages via Duolingo. But I do all my correspondence and reading on my NOOK or on my PC not on my phone. I like a full size keyboard.
AndI turn my phone off in the evenings and at night. When I study on the porch I don’t answer the home phone or text messages. Some people may watch videos on their phone but I don’t. I sometimes listen to music on my phone but more often listen to books or podcasts. I think it is important that we be masters of our pleasures and not a slave of addictions. Moderation is a virtue.
To use things that give us pleasure is fine. But not to the point we are disgusted with them or screaming with a headache! I love to read and study languages and I can spend three or four hours on Duolingo studying or reviewing languages. I keep notebooks of my newest languages.
But I have three basic rules for Duolingo:
1) I don’t begin unless I have read the morning paper WSJ and listened to my favorite podcasts
2) I always go for a short walk and do some cleanup in the pool and garden before I start
3) once I finish my basic studies, I do not go back to my phone to begin again but only read and review my notebooks after that or read something else. I will not stay up all night. I feel that late night sessions are not effective anyway. If I am tired I stop.
I also love to listen to baseball games (usually on the radio via MLB at bat in English or Spanish) but I limit myself to ONE FULL GAME a day. I could easily listen to 9 hours a day, but I limit myself to checking the standings, line scores and box scores of most teams. I only listen to my favorite team and top teams (because I want to get to know them better before the championship series).
So, I enjoy languages and baseball MORE because I limit the time, I spend with each. And baseball also is a language review for me because I listen to some games in Spanish. I try to read or listen to Spanish at least one or two hours a day. I have ONE PLACE I write (at my desk) and two places to read and study: in my armchair or on my easy chair on the porch. I have no television in my library, only a radio and CD player plus the computer which has SPOTIFY.
We have only one TV, so this limits my TV time. I often watch YOUTUBE for World News of podcasts in the morning or late evening when my wife is not watching anything. We often watch baseball games together and World Cup soccer and sometimes Olympic sports but are not obsessed with watching every minute of every sport. If I don’t have time to watch a game, I am happy to read the scores in the paper or on the phone.
I don’t spend a lot of time on the phone limiting my talks to close friends and family. For example, if my wife is aways visiting family I call or text her at least once or twice a day. I prefer to communicate via FB or IM or text. I like to share articles and Audible books via text or X. I am not a big fan of ZOOM meetings, but I enjoy the occasional FACETIME with my grandchildren. I also decide to spend time with my wife just to keep her company. My wife and I almost always watch the news and Jeopardy together but I like to watch war movies and war news and she does not so we do those separately. The last time we went to the movies she chose the Barbie movie, which was fine with me. I enjoyed it. It was amusing at times and had a certain element of nostalgia. I go out of my way to share the TV with my wife and sometimes watch what she is watching. If I really am not interested, I sit with her and read quietly from my NOOK. I enjoy reading on my NOOK but i take pleasure in reading physical magazines and books as well especially those with maps and color illustrations (such as National Geographic, Ancient Warfare or San Diego Zoo Magazine). I am not on social media all day long (I don’t have FB on my phone) but I do check it at least once a day for at least thirty minutes or so via my PC. I think it is necessary to unplug some days and some hours. When I visit my grandchildren, I never use my phone in their presence but just do things they like to do , do art , play , read together, sing, go for walks or watch cartoons.
So, there is nothing wrong with electronics if one is not addicted and on them and answering messages all day long. When I was a teacher, I NEVER used my phone or answered email except during lunch, during my prep period or before and after school. I think phones and electronic devices should be severely limited, even prohibited in many school settings but that is a topic for another time!
Spirit of Cecilia 
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