Turn off those bells and whistles..

I really love this article I found it one of the best reflective pieces I read on the anniversary of 11 September, and I'd been meaning to post this September but I just took a while to find it on my computer :).

It's Time to Turn Off Those Bells and Whistles

By Matt Richtel [New York Times]; Published: September 2002.

Put down that SkyMall catalog. You do not need a juicer that has e-mail access. While you're at it, shove your cellphone, BlackBerry and other gadgets into the sock drawer.

You can pick them up again on Thursday.

That's the day after the anniversary of the terrorist attacks, a day that, among its many facets, lets us reflect on the mixed blessing of technology in our lives.

There's no doubt that we should raise a glass to the ubiquitous silicon chip for its dedication, dependability and overall contributions on Sept. 11. Cellphone calls from 30,000 feet and more than 100 floors up let some of us hear our loved ones for the last time. The phones delivered continuing reports of heroism. They permitted those of us a proverbial million miles from ground zero to call to tell one another: that plane just crashed into my heart.

Around-the-clock news updates - on television, over the Internet and through wireless hand-held gadgets – informed us on that day that our world was falling apart, and then that it would remain intact. For a few days, the one thing that seemed almost as important to us as kin was the constant flow of news.

The trouble is, we have so often abused technology and let it dull our senses. And so, on Wednesday, consider observing a moment, if not a day, of data silence. Pull the D.S.L. connection out of that forearm vein. Listen. Slow down. Understand that whatever it is you think you need, you don't absolutely, positively need it overnight:

Do not instant anything. Your interpersonal relationships are not enhanced by setting a record for the sending and receipt of messages like "Hi. How R U," or "Insnt MssGng Is so kool!" When the urge hits for interaction, get positively medieval: write a letter. Write it on something that the old-timers called paper. Use your own font. Handwriting has personality - yours. Let "instant" be replaced by "anticipation."

Do not call your orthodontist. If this sounds odd, you may not be familiar with the cellphone orthodontist principle. It comes into play when you are addicted to talking on the phone while driving but have run out of people to call. Eventually, desperate for anyone to talk to, you phone the guy who attached your braces in junior high and say: "I love what you did with my teeth. Are you busy for the next 40 miles?"

The point is this: On Wednesday, don't call someone unless you mean it. Save your minutes for Thursday. Don't fill dead air time with empty words. While you're at it, restrict incoming calls. Turn off the ringer. That person sitting across from you at lunch deserves all your attention. Pretend that he or she is a New York firefighter. Do not once say: "Hold on. That's the other line."

Don't upgrade - anything. That empty nagging feeling you have? It's not the need for more megahertz. You will not feel any more connected to other human beings if you can see their virtual images more clearly on a new flat-screen monitor. Go outside and browse other people. Establish a wireless connection formerly known as the hug.

Don't be caught on the 24-hour news merry-go-round. The round-the-clock, rapid-fire television news format has become a potpourri of factoids, rumor and important updates about what George Clooney had for lunch. On Wednesday, pull your head off the swivel. Don't be distracted by snippets. Read one entire news article start to finish, whatever the topic. Five minutes later, make a concerted effort to remember what the heck it was about.

Don't multitask. Give your undivided attention. When you're nursing the baby, don't talk on the phone. When you're talking on the phone, don't check your e-mail messages. When you're checking your messages, don't clip your nails, browse the Web, pay your taxes, tell your mother you love her and keep running back and forth to the kitchen to see if you've received even more e-mail on your new juicer.

Don't think about tomorrow. Forget about what advances are to come and whether you're falling behind. News flash: You're behind. Get over it. Instead, think about the past - not a year ago, but long before. Think about how technology, which has evolved into incredible gadgetry like cellphones, has evolved along another path into weapons of mass destruction. Think about how to use in-person diplomacy in your own life to settle old, tired, unnecessary disputes.

If you feel angry and vengeful, don't fight it. Use your destructive energy for good: Delete an emoticon. Kill a symbol. In its place, express a real emotion - good, bad or indifferent. Find the words - not symbols, acronyms or digital era short-cuts - that mean: I love you. I miss you. I'm sorry. This Wednesday, keep it real. You can get virtual again on Thursday.