[anonzzz]

An article about distraction on HN! How ironic! HN is often a place for me to be distracted!

I often romanticize about living a distraction free life. I contemplate the idea to the point of being labeled a luddite by my friends. I dream of being a cool kid that uses a Light Phone (I really want one!). I want to be one of the people in their advertisements that is fully engaged in some activity. I think that if I just threw out all of the distractors and lived a more simple life I would be more present. I sincerely appreciate the authors attempts at scaling back technology in the hopes of living a more present life. I never thought to buy a wordprocessor that was not connected to the internet! This is a man that understands my inner itch at living this minimialist, distraction free, fully engaged presence.

I, like the author, am discovering that I can't buy a Light Phone and then suddenly be fully engaged. I can't throw out all of the technology in the hopes that my enlightened self emerges. The distractors will simply change. The hard work begins when I begin examining the root behind my distraction. What am I running from? Why?

Thank you to the author for reminding me to focus on the root causes of my distractions. Alas, the magical solution to distraction is nothing but an illusion. Maybe I will still buy a Light Phone though :-)