Close that laptop: why you should adopt new in-flight pastimes
Despite the payoff of reaching your destination, one of the headaches of travel is waiting to get there. Sure, this could be time used to type up that TPS report your six bosses have been hounding you about or learn about the cosmos from Neil deGrasse Tyson — feel free to while away your time as you see fit. But if you’re glued to that screen all the way from Sydney to Dallas you might want to practice some different tactics.
Here's why you should consider finding in-flight pastimes sans technology:
1. Watching zombie movies again and feeling wigged out during turbulence? Shutting that screen means making time for meditation, which can reduce stress levels and help ease anxiety.
2. Choosing not to lug all those heavy devices around the world with you will give your aching back a chance to relax.
3. Vacating your technology-bound habits makes room for creativity. Admit it, you’ve always wanted to impress your friends with elaborate origami pieces only you’ve never found the time. Besides, in six hours you might pull off a stack of swans large enough to cover everyone’s birthday this year. Gifts: check.
4. Giving the computer a break means ending brain waste, or all that time you spend scrolling around the screen for no reason. This way, you can do something more useful, like study the map. Let’s admit it: most Americans just don’t know their salt about global geography. Yep, that includes you, cowboy.
5. Making your flight into a digital detox means more time to meet new people. Connection always makes time fly by much faster, plus studies have shown that bantering with someone makes you cheerier.
6. Staring at a bright screen for too long can cause dry eyes, tension headaches, and eye strain, perhaps consider taking a nap instead.
7. Getting distracted on your computer might keep you in your chair too long, which can be dangerous, especially for those of us getting up there in age. Putting it away allows you to take a stroll or six down the aisle. Exercise during a flight will help keep your circulation moving; brownie points if you get more creative and opt for dance moves.