Out of pocket computing
I'm going to do something this week that I haven't done in years...I'm going to take a vacation without bringing my computer. Admittedly, I'm cheating because I'm going to take my phone, which is perfectly capable of accessing both e-mail and the web. In the past, though, I've brought the computer because I'm self-employed, and I wanted to make sure I had my files with me in case a client asked for a chapter, or something like that. And yeah, on some of those vacations I ended up doing some work, specifically because I had the computer with me, and somebody did ask for a file. I'm not claiming to be a workaholic or anything here; I would certainly have preferred not to do any work while vacationing. However, when you're a freelancer, managing half a dozen difference projects for several different clients, it doesn't matter how many times you say you're going to be out of town and unavailable, something will arrive that week that needs to be dealt with immediately, and the client will simply assume that you'll do it. It doesn't happen every time, but it happens often enough.
So I'm faced with what I should do for a carry-on if I'm not bringing my laptop bag. This feels very strange. Everything that I would ordinarily have put in my bag...a book, music, a handheld game...is now contained in my phone. Maybe I'll just forgo the bag altogether and walk on the plane with only what's in my pockets. That would be strange.
So I'm faced with what I should do for a carry-on if I'm not bringing my laptop bag. This feels very strange. Everything that I would ordinarily have put in my bag...a book, music, a handheld game...is now contained in my phone. Maybe I'll just forgo the bag altogether and walk on the plane with only what's in my pockets. That would be strange.