The five days I didn’t have Internet access at home were painful and strangely wonderful – just not at the same time. It all started one morning when I went to my desk, coffee in hand, as I always do, to start my day. A few clicks and nothing. No bars. No Safari. Nothing.

Hence, several frustrating hours with our DSL carrier: automated service-holding – a technician I couldn’t understand – holding again – testing the line over the phone – more holding – getting disconnected – only to start the whole hair-pulling process over again, and so on. Several hours later it was discovered the root of our problem seemed to be a faulty modem, but not to worry, they would overnight it to us. Hallelujah.

Two days pass and no modem. Panic set in. How will I survive another day without Internet? Email? Facebook? Pinterest? And, heaven forbid, Twitter? Thankfully, my cell phone had Internet, but it was an old model BlackBerry and I nearly went blind from reading the tiny screen (Just so you know, I’ve since updated to an iPhone).

Desperate, I called my DSL carrier – AGAIN. The technician couldn’t have been more pleasant, apologizing robotically with the same line over and over again. “Please,” I begged, “No need to apologize, just bring me back my Internet. And hurry!”

So I did what anybody who was desperate for Wi-Fi would do. I went to the nearest Starbucks. The only problem is I like to work in a place that’s quiet and private, like home. Somewhere I can be in my pajamas (or yoga pants), somewhere I can have my hair piled on top of my head and my funky reading glasses on with nary a stitch of makeup. I can’t be caught dead like this. Even in desperate times vanity rears it’s well-coiffed head.

Thus, I settled on the Starbucks parking lot in a nice shady spot close enough to the building to still be hooked up to Wi-Fi. Not as comfortable as home and way more awkward. I worried people were looking at me like I was crazy, setting up office in the parking lot. The baristas took out the trash, tilted their head, and slowly nodded. “Oh, to heck with this,” I said to myself and drove home where I could live like the Amish.

I began to wonder what on earth I did with myself before the Internet? Then I got busy. Here are the things I got done instead: I wrote this post, cleaned out cupboards and drawers and closets and dropped off discarded items to various charities. I returned gifts, organized notes for my blog, set up files, cleaned off my desk, went to the car wash, called friends, found some new recipes to dog-ear but will never try, and so on. I felt freer than I had in a long time.

It was at that point I realized I desperately needed to manage my time better. The internet had become a huge distraction and alluring enough that I could waste away hours in front of a screen instead of living, or writing, or whatever. This break was a blessing in disguise.

On the fifth day of my newfound freedom, the modem arrived. I considered not opening the box, but at the time I still had a teenager living in the house – so I caved. I’m embarrassed to admit, within a week or so, I was back to my old tricks. Maybe I should pray for a power outage.

Written by Linda Wolff

Linda Wolff writes the blog Carpool Goddess where she shares her adventures from carpool to empty nest. She no longer drives carpool, but that’s our little secret. Her work has appeared on Huffington Post, Yahoo! Shine, Scary Mommy, Better After 50, Generation Fabulous and others. Follow her on Facebook and Twitter.

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