bombs in bottles
I have been thinking about terminating my broadband connection for about two days now, and the early observations are stacking up fast.
I have stopped looking at my phone when I'm working. It's right here; it's connected to my laptop, as the hotspot works best that way. But I don't pick it up.
I still get the urge to do so. But then it seems silly, somehow, to look at the Internet on a device I have connected to my laptop *to look at the Internet.* So I don't. I got a client project drafted in record time this morning.
I'm sure this will change. It always does. But for the past three mornings, my phone has been sitting right next to my laptop, yet I haven't picked it up once. That's pretty impressive.
I have realized that giving up broadband will also mean:
That said, I haven't really enjoyed a Sims 4 pack since Eco Lifestyle. Werewolves was okay. And I haven't been playing at all lately. Every time I boot up a video game lately, I'm only reminded that my real life is more interesting.
I also realized that:
I asked myself "does this count as freeloading?" But I'm more inclined to file it under "borrowing a tool I don't use often enough to justify its cost." I only expect to need this about once every five years, and it places no strain at all on my friends' broadband.
Maybe that's self-serving. But I borrow stuff from friends and family all the time, and vice versa. I'm not seeing a huge difference between "once every five years I download stuff on your broadband, costing you nothing" and "every spring I borrow your rototiller, put some wear and tear on it, and then forget to return it for a month" (oops).
(It is still sitting in my garage.)
My broadband was down yesterday for about two hours. I still have no idea why. All my other utilities worked; there were no storms; no one collided with a pole in the neighborhood as far as I know (which did happen earlier this spring).
My provider sent texts informing me about the outage and restoration. However, they only reimburse customers when an outage is their fault and lasts more than four days. Two hours I can let slide, but when the driver hit the pole earlier this year, broadband was out for three days - and they wouldn't have reimbursed us anyway because it wasn't "their fault."
Contrast electricity. When the power is out, my bill goes down, as I'm not consuming electrons. But when the broadband goes out, I'm still paying the full amount, even though I couldn't use it if I wanted to. Not loving it, fam.
"But Molly, that's also how your phone plan works," you may or may not be thinking.
Yes, it is. But I think of my phone connection "use" as constant: it's active to receive calls and texts in real time (even if I never answer contemporaneously). It is, in essence, acting as my receptionist, so I'm willing to pay it to be on standby. My broadband is more like a PO Box: I access it when I need it, and I need it to be accessible at the agreed-upon times. Which, unlike a PO Box, is "anytime." Except when my provider decides "no service, only pay."
Also, Mint has been FAR more reliable than my broadband these past few months, especially during storms.
I still VERY MUCH have a habit of remembering some bit of media I haven't thought of in years and hopping right online to stream/download it. That's going to have to change.
I suspected as much, which is why I gave myself two months for this changeover. That may be the toughest habit to break.
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