I am considering this to be a successful first day living without a smartphone. I might even go further to say it was somewhat enjoyable.
The morning of a man living without a smartphone
Half asleep through blurry eyes, I could see a flashing screen. Memories were flooding back to me of the simple alarm sound.
My morning routine is usually to flick through the news and my emails while still lying in bed. I wasn’t tempted to replace this with a game of Snake. The only notifications I could have had were calls and messages, but there were none. While I’m using a temporary number for the duration of the challenge, I worked out call forwarding last night. I was showered and out the door quicker than ever as my smartphone wasn’t there to delay me.
Getting to the office
It’s a funny feeling walking around with a Nokia 5110. While I know it’s for charity, the feeling is very familiar. It’s like Movember that I’ve done in the past. Basically, you look a little silly for a good cause, hoping most people understand what you’re at. Using a Nokia 5110 isn’t as obvious as a growing a moustache. People are confused but also delighted to see old faithful.
Nostalgia runs rampant as people see the Nokia 5110, but there’s laughter in the office as I get a phonecall.
Best moment of the day hearing this going off in the office ? Good old monophonic ringtones! https://t.co/4iV02IBkeP
— Eoin McDonald (@eoinmcd92) September 12, 2016
The phone call was a family member, confirming they had donated to the cause this is all in aid of. The same family member texted me moments later, simply because everyone now knows every communication puts me in a slightly embarrassing position. Is the Nokia 5110 actually a more social phone?
What else have I learned from day one?
Your muscle memory is ridiculous. Without thinking, my fingers are flying across the keypad of the Nokia 5110 using little shortcuts to get the most out of the pre-T9 dictionary. More muscle memory can be seen in how many times I reach for the Nokia to check useless notifications. You know like when you check Facebook, close the app and immediately open Facebook again.
It’s going well so far, but do keep it tuned to hear more tales from myself, Jon, Dean and Gary. Also, please donate to the cause. We are aiming to raise €1000 for the Irish Cancer Society by living without a smartphone. Right now, we’re downing our phones for one week, but should we hit all our goals, that could be a whole month!
