Notes

You are planning to take an extended trip away from your home? It is important to have all the digital materials that you require prior to the time when WiFi stops working.
Here's a short story of my last excursion to the Arctic on a boat. https://setiweb.ssl.berkeley.edu/beta/show_user.php?userid=10279818 It sounded great, National Geographic trip thru the ice and back including polar bears, as well as several other species. There would be ice everywhere, snow everywhere. Man-made machines were created to combat the elements and navigate through the frozen wilderness of northern Norway. It was a grand task, an epic fight against the north weather, the north pole.

I was told by my supervisor to bring along every piece of technology I could. I was able to fit my laptop, as well as an extra large screen to increase my workspace. I was told that electricity was not an issue. I was unsure what was going to happen. Two days into my 14-day trip I did not know of the fact that my Internet connection would not work and I would be gone for the remainder of 10 days. When it finally happened I was devastated. I was stunned that any trip, no matter how difficult or distant, would result in a sudden disconnect from the world of technology. Even in the 21st century. I did not plan the time off, and not only did I have an unfinished project that I needed to attend to in the week ahead and I also had other things I had to complete.

Today, no one cares if they're forced to go offline. Internet is available no matter where you happen to be. If your internet connection is not working at home, you can always find the nearest McDonalds near by and take advantage of their free WiFi to access what you require. You could even take your laptop into Starbucks and place a table at the counter to surf the Internet until you're dead. There's no restaurant or café that is able to provide electricity in the north. It's not near any electricity source. There's no free Internet accessible. Two options are available in such circumstances: turn off your internet and bring your satellite access.

I cannot afford to buy a satphone, it is expensive, particularly for Internet. I'll create a video and audio library to use for the next adventure without Internet. The last time I was online, I only had two songs. The songs were downloaded back in the day and all I was able to listen to was three jazz tracks and one song I had no idea the name of. It's that simple. 4 songs for two weeks of complete silence. If I had known that this would be the case, I would prepare. I would have loaded my computer with shows from television and movies as well as lots of music videos. My most loved podcasts would be my soundtrack for day. It's simple to download them, convert them to mp3 and save on my computer, and then simply lay in my room listening to whatever I like to listen to while at home, yet I I rarely find the time. It would be my golden hour or two weeks of gold, but ended up being 2 weeks of staring into the ceiling and running to meet passengers every time a sound comes from the corridors..

The trip was empty, both literally and figuratively.. I've never been so bored. I was aware that the issue was going to be caused by the thick ice layer, so the boat was forced to turn around and be returned to civilization. It was not surprising but it did mean that many hours of unproductive time could have been used to listen to podcasts , or watch DIY videos about home repairs, as well being able to listen to music. Next time I will convert Youtube videos into mp4 and MP3 formats on my laptop. Music will lift your spirits and help you feel better. It is possible to download Netflix and Hulu movies to your phone to stream offline. They can also be carried along on the long, cold journey. Be sure to stay away from the boredom. Have fun!


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