Unplugged: Reflections on Being Phone-Free for Four Days

Along with about 15 other Oxford graduate students, I recently spent four days at an academic retreat in Rome. Although we stayed at a scenic villa with stunning views of Lake Albano, it would be wrong to brand the trip as a “vacation.” It was a study session, during which we were expected to read and write. We were allowed to use our computers, but we didn’t have internet and had to surrender our phones upon arrival.

I was somewhat excited to give up my phone. Updates from news apps constantly pop up on my screen, and I thought a news detox might be a refreshing change. I cannot go four days without writing, but I welcomed a few days without Slack notifications assigning me a new article to edit. (Apologies to my boss, Judson.) Like everyone else who has ever published something online, I often receive unpleasant direct messages; in response to my recent article about Dylan Mulvaney, one LGBTQ+ activist with over 14,000 followers wrote to me saying “Hope your [sic] choke on your hatred” and further attempted to get my university funding revoked. I was happy to temporarily ignore my inbox and comments of this nature.

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Abigail Anthony

Abigail Anthony is a staff writer at National Review.

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Along with about 15 other Oxford graduate students, I recently spent four days at an academic retreat in Rome. Although we stayed at a scenic villa with stunning views of Lake Albano, it would be wrong to brand the trip as a “vacation.” It was a study session, during which we were expected to read and write. We were allowed to use our computers, but we didn’t have internet and had to surrender our phones upon arrival.

I was somewhat excited to give up my phone. Updates from news apps constantly pop up on my screen, and I thought a news detox might be a refreshing change. I cannot go four days without writing, but I welcomed a few days without Slack notifications assigning me a new article to edit. (Apologies to my boss, Judson.) Like everyone else who has ever published something online, I often receive unpleasant direct messages; in response to my recent article about Dylan Mulvaney, one LGBTQ+ activist with over 14,000 followers wrote to me saying “Hope your [sic] choke on your hatred” and further attempted to get my university funding revoked. I was happy to temporarily ignore my inbox and comments of this nature.