E-Simple

Before I left for Peace Corps, I had a house phone and a cell phone. I had internet and satellite television. I had internet access on my cell phone and an answering service for my house phone. I had email accounts at three colleges plus two private email accounts. Passwords? I had so many passwords and variations of passwords it was dizzying. All this is designed to make my life more efficient and productive . . . well, sometimes it did, but often it was a source of stress and frustration. Dropped calls, internet interruptions, huge e-bills, forgotten passwords and contracts are things that make my life less efficient and more difficult. And, lost phones? Well, I needed more than one phone to find the one I misplaced or lost; this wasn’t a luxury; it was a requirement!

There are electronic gadgets for everything and anyone who knows me knows that I love e-gadgets . . . when they work and when I can find them. Three IPods? Of course! One summons WIFI and another is a perfect size for the gym. The third is needed in case the other two fail.

Of course, a machine is necessary that converts VHF to DVD format. How else would I be able to convert DVD to other formats that are more easily stored on my computer? And then I need the remote control for one of my three laptops that doesn’t have one built into the system. And the projector? Well, how else would I show films at Los Angeles Harbor College . . . not to mention the nights we pop some corn, rearrange furniture and have a neighborhood movie night. I could go on, but I’m sure you get the point.

I longed for the days before we had so much E-stuff. When I was a young child, we had one black and white television. My father bought one of the first remote controls. It was the size of our living room sofa and was connected to the television by a cable that a small child could crawl through. We had one phone hung on the kitchen wall and often when we picked it up we heard voices on the receiver. Four families shared a party-line. When I lived in Thousand Oaks, only five numbers were required to dial a friend on my pink princess phone. When I was a child, my family got on fine without all the e-toys we find on the store shelves today. Barbie Dolls and imagination were the only requirement for a girl growing up in the 50s.

So when I decided to volunteer for Peace Corps I was ready to e-simplify and rid my life of all this e-stuff. Sort of. My first thought was fear and then panic set in. I wondered what life would be like without my e-stuff. Ah, back to a simple life. Would I be able to do it? I began an internet research to find a list of things to bring. Then I learned that although Saint Lucia is a poor country, most houses have electricity and indoor plumbing and internet is easily available.

Humm…. I must bring an IPod. I learned that most Peace Corps Volunteers bring a laptop with them. I guess I should bring speakers too so that I can enjoy music. Thank goodness for digital cameras. I can download my pictures on Flixter and use some of them for my blog.

When I got here, I learned cable TV is the norm. I’ve been assigned more passwords and codes adding to the repertoire of endless number, letter and character combinations to remember. Peace Corps arranged for a special rate for volunteer cell phones. For some reason it’s necessary to have a house phone with internet. One cell phone, however, isn’t really enough. There are two cell phone carriers and it’s expensive to make cross-over calls. Many people have two pre-paid cell phones which saves them money. It turns out the house phone is also necessary because it’s cost-prohibitive to call landlines with cell phones and vice-versa. The phone system here is very complicated.

I’m standing firm on this point. I’m drawing the line in the sand. I will not have an answering machine for my house phone! As a Peace Corps Volunteer I must make some sacrifice. So much for e-simplification.