Week 17: Being Out of the LOOP ft. Moms

Unpacking the Stress of Staying Informed and In the Loop This is week 17 of Off the Internet. It's a 50 episode experiment where I step away from the feed and see what life is like when I'm not constantly plugged in into Everything Everywhere All at once. And this weeks episode is called Being Out of the Loop, which is funny because I've absolutely been in the loop this week and very on the Internet, very deep in it, very informed, maybe too informed. And it's a paradox because this episode is about FOMO and I had a lot of it this week. It had a lot to do with what was going on in Iran. And I could not sit peacefully while all these major world events were happening and I did not know what was going on. So I needed the updates. I needed contacts and for whatever reason it felt like that was needed. But then after you actually get it, I listen to a few podcasts, I realized that nothing in my life has changed. All that happened is I'm more stressed, which really truly feels like what this experiment is sometimes. So congratulations, if you are the same, you are fully informed. It's possible that you may be slightly more spiritually unwell. So join the club. And what I do think is that there is a weird paradox of being out of the loop because you do feel a little behind outside of this bubble of even your pears, just a little bit left out. And if you're too far out the loop, I mean, society just really just moves on. But anyway, to make sense of what's going on, I brought in a very special guest, my mom, on her first podcast ever. And honestly, that makes the episode a lot better because it's just not me spiraling into poetic speech for another 15 minutes. This is just a conversation that has more wisdom in it, more peace and perspective. So I'm truly grateful. It's a very fun episode. We can just jump into it, enjoy. Examining What We Gain and Lose from Constant Digital Connection Do you think we've gained anything from being in the loop always? I know there's large generational things that have, you know, transpired in my generation. We've just recently adapted to being connected all the time because growing up, that's when the Internet came out and now you can't escape not being connected from everything all the time. There's Twitter and you have the little Instagram. You have everything. If you want to be connected, you can be connected as much to your heart's content. But do you think we gained anything from that or did we lose anything? Speaker 2 I think it's a mixture of both. You gain and lose at the same time because to make Internet takes time out of you personally, out of the person, because you have to spend time in the Internet. You're on a tube. It doesn't matter what kind of tube it is. A cell phone, a computer, a tablet. You're on a tube and your eyes is fixed on a tube. You're looking for likes, you're looking for followers, you're looking for all kind of stuff. And unless you get it, you won't give up on it. But when you're out of it, it's a new life, a new you. Everything turns new and you your mind is new. It's rebirth, it's regenerated, it's rejuvenated all the reef. Speaker 1 And that's if you're not there, you're not in the loop. Speaker 2 Yeah, yeah, yeah. Speaker 1 Yeah, when you're in the loop, you kind of lose yourself in the crowd. You. Speaker 2 Sure. Speaker 1 Do as they say. You sure? Speaker 2 Do there's? Speaker 1 That old saying that says if your friends jump off a bridge or you jump off a bridge sometimes I'm Mom. I tell you, look, we don't even know we're jumping off the bridge. By the time we know we jumped off the bridge, we already halfway skydiving down off the thing, you know? So I get that. Yeah, being out the loop definitely has its advantages. But sometimes I know there are things we have to be in the loop for because there's something about the way this world works where you have to give Caesar what's Caesar's, which means there are these tradable things that you have to be worldly about and know to show yourself approved. If anything, you know what I'm saying? You get you. Do you feel me? But how do you tell the difference between the things that matter in that context or just something that feels more like noise? And maybe I included this in the intro, but here's a recap. This week I spent, and last week I spent so much time learning about what's going on in Iran, and it cascaded me learning a bunch of other stuff. Then you know what? Boom. We're back to knowing all the things now. I even tried to temper it down, but even still, I saw what the effect has on my mind. It's not the same. And it's just the news cycle. It's not even all the other things, you know? And I'm like, was that even worth it? Because you really. You think you learned a little bit, but you didn't learn nothing. Yeah. Speaker 2 What I think is being in the loop has a lot to do with your emotions. You feel sad for hearing it. You feel angry. You, you feel all kind of emotions going through feelings, personal and impersonal emotions going through you. Because looking at especially the Internet, we're talking on the Internet, things that are happening, especially in the world are not really pleasing. Most of them, and especially in the newsreel, they don't give you pleasing news. Very few laughter now, very, very seldom, people laughing. People are just making noise and do we understand the noise they're making or we are part of that noise do. Speaker 1 You mean like people making noise or just feels like a bunch of chatter? Speaker 2 Oh, it's both. It's both because you hear the same thing over and they make sure it sticks in. They say it over and over and over again so it sticks in and every time you see it you get angry. From Elephant Joy to Nature's Calm: Reclaiming Sanity Do you feel like there's anything that you've seen that makes you feel good? Like I spend some time in the loop and I feel this was worth it to me. Speaker 2 Okay, last night I saw the end of the news. I really don't watch the news, but they had an elephant, baby elephant, a new baby elephant being born. And I laughed so much because it was taking a bath in a bathtub in its own pool and it won't stop tumbling in that pool. So that was good. I really laugh. I said even even a baby elephant can have fun. So why won't we have fun instead of making all that, you know, hoopla about everything else? Speaker 1 Yeah, OK, OK. Do we feel like there's anything about being in the loop that is necessary? Does it feel like something that we should be striving for to be out of the loop? Speaker 2 Yeah, I think being in the loop is a form of insanity itself because so many people are mentally disturbed by being in the loop. And not only mentally disturbed are Medicaid, they have to take medication because they are still in the loop. But to get back your sanity, I mean you again, Yeah, give it up for a little minute. Try it. Take a fast, take a sabbatical, try it and see if it works for you. It may be just what you need. Speaker 1 It's true. It is true, man. I do think there are cascading feelings about being connected or not being connected because during COVID, you know, a lot of people were forced to be outside of the loop. There was no loop for people to be in. In fact, if anything, we were all in the same loop of not being in a loop. And people are spiraling out of control and losing their minds. What do you think was going on there? Speaker 2 I think the animals understood it better than us because you and I were working from home at that time, and when we went on the backyard, we had all kind of animals circling us. You were playing the guitar and they were singing on the deck. You remember that they were so happy. So that gave us a sense of who we belong with. We belong with nature, the animals, the trees in your backyard. That was the time you really stayed out for a minute. Speaker 1 I see. I get it. OK is if what you're saying if just to repeat, we were very disconnected during COVID. The animals themselves never got disconnected. They were connected the whole time. They probably even know COVID was going up. They were just living their best life and you had an opportunity. You live your best life, too. That's right. Or you could just be disturbed by what was going on. OK. I think that's a pretty good, pretty good place to stop for here. Mom, thank you so much for just hanging out for just a little bit being part of your first. Yes, yes. Speaker 2 It was my pleasure. I'm having this podcast with you. I really appreciate you and you're the best. Speaker 1 Hey, OK, Well, two best, all right.