A Tale of Two Tables
I'm glad tomorrow is a company holiday. I could use the extra day to prepare to prepare, because I want to make some significant changes for 2023. One of the changes I have made is to rearranged my home office to be more conducive to my goal of being more intentional with the digital technology I use.
Before, I had two tables arranged in an L shape to form a single “desk”. Now those tables are separated. One table is for all the digital technology I use – the “Online Table”. The other table is the “Offline Table” and strictly for tasks such as research, study, planning, writing, and meditation – anything that doesn't require me to be looking at a screen.
With the Online Table, I have purposely tried to pare down and consolidate all the digital technology I personally and exclusively use so that it fits on this single table. I now have only one display – my trusty old Dynex 32” 720p LCD TV. This is the only display my desktop PC is connected to. The TV is connected to a KVM switch so I can also use it as an external display for my work or personal laptops, if needed. I adopted a single monitor workflow a couple years ago, so no worries, here. My laptops are stored in a vertical dual laptop stand beside the TV when not in use. I also have a small audio receiver and two speakers, a dual SATA USB 3.0 HDD/SSD dock, and a wireless keyboard and mouse. All of this fits on a single table.
The Offline Table is where I will keep a paper planner, notebooks, writing utensils, books, and other related materials. It is where I will write letters, brainstorm ideas, study scriptures, and generally “disconnect” from technology.
These tables are physically separate from one another for both symbolic and practical reasons. This is just one of the many changes I will be making in the coming days and weeks to help promote a healthier relationship with technology.