Having written a good deal about living Off Grid, and realizing that there is so much interest out there, it got me thinking a bit more about it.
For a variety of reasons, many people, particularly younger individuals, are almost turning the clock back and looking at a slower pace of life and a more sustainable way of doing things which is more in tune with a by gone era.
Perhaps we are all seeking to do that, all be it in a much more watered down form?
Technology has increased at a phenomenal rate, and has benefited us all. Who would be without their mobile phone or the internet?
However, with AI arriving on the screen, and we are finding out its applications already, one can only wonder what lies ahead, and many of us are perhaps wanting to slow things down and feel more in control.
AI undoubtedly has enormous benefits but there is also a dark side, which cannot be ignored.
Whilst it will revolutionize the working day for many by taking over what was done by human administration, it is undoubtedly going to create a world where at times we cannot distinguish reality from fiction.
On the negative side, this could have enormous ramifications at political and economic levels.
I am not sufficiently up to speed with AI, so can only limit my comments to my current understanding of it all, but suffice to say, whilst I appreciate the benefits, I am somewhat apprehensive of the future and would wish to take a step back and look at how life has changed over the last 10-20 years.
Without taking such drastic steps as living Off Grid, perhaps we should look at where we are as human beings in the west?
It seems that the whole world is in some sort of conflict at the moment, so as different countries will have their own difficulties, I shall limit this to a UK perspective.
As a small country, with one of the wealthiest economies in the world, a free health and education system available to all, we should be thriving and happy.
That doesn`t seem to be the case.
Leaving politics aside, we seem to be rather disgruntled, not particularly physically healthy, and not at all mentally healthy.
As a society we have been governed by material things, equating success and happiness by amassing them as a mark of achievement in life.
In order to aspire to these these things, technology has stepped in by speeding everything up and in so doing, removed many human interactions.
Actions which were previously carried out on a slower physical level, are now activated by the brain which can very quickly access a technological version.
Whilst this has made life easier and faster, it seems to have overloaded the brain with new signals which can bring about a feeling of stress and not being able to cope with them all, and a feeling that something is missing.
There seems to have been a void created which needs to be filled by doing something physical.
As we know, gym memberships have rocketed in recent years.
Whether the reason for joining a gym has to do with keeping in shape, or as a bit of a status symbol, it is a need to use the body for what it was designed to do, and that is to use the skeletal system with its amazing network of muscles, organs, nerves and circulation.
Many are finding the benefit of having a run before work in the morning, which wakes up the whole system and improves productivity and mental health.
Similarly children, who are increasingly being transported to school, are also benefiting from walking a mile, if their school is taking part in such a scheme.
There is an increase in people wanting to carry out home renovation themselves, which gives a chance to be practical and do some physical work.
If we cast our sights across to the continent, there are many examples of UK individuals, many having lived a sedentary life, buying up French chateaux and taking on massive renovation projects to fulfil a need to be creative and carry out physical work.
It is no coincidence that they have a feeling of personal satisfaction and fulfilment which is not achieved in the digital world.
There are smaller ways which we are all doing in our own way.
We are being encouraged to walk more which uses the body and improves our mental health.
Many holidays are now activity based as opposed to the days of lying on the beach for two weeks.
Of course perhaps switching off and lying on a beach may still be the antidote to a highly stressed lifestyle.
The ironic part is that we are now prepared to pay in order to use our bodies in a way that was done automatically by our previous lifestyles.
Scandinavian countries are often held up as having a more enviable way of life, attaching less importance to material things and being more in touch with the natural world by spending much of their leisure time in a simpler way of life, usually off grid.
There has to be a message there, of which we should be taking heed.
Perhaps the Off Gridders are leading the way!
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