Doing Without

 For the first time in many years, we went on a trip without bringing a computer. We did not have, that is, a computer with a keyboard and a fair-sized display. We did have mobile phones, which have computational power beyond what some of those computers in the past did.

Only a few times did I think that it would have been well to have a computer. Those were times that I wished to write something at length, or to read something in larger increments than will display on a telephone. Yet despite my ineptitude with the iPhone "keyboard", I did get by, and may have managed to send some messages of a couple dozen words or so.

The benefit, apart from sparing a couple of pounds to carry about, was that there was no temptation to linger over the web after waking up. That probably gave me at least another half hour per day out looking around.