Erika said I could share her protest card with you all. It is written in three different colors of markers on a high quality cardstock card:

“Dear Someone

I am so very sorry you are receiving this letter. My mother has made it a RULE that we are not allowed to use Anything, no devices not even internet! You must be thinking ‘good for you guys!’ Well you do it then. I must write letters to talk or I must use a weird cord phone. I am here to PROTEST! Save the internet, save the world!

Sinseraly,

A Young Teen Who Cares!”

 

So, that’s most of that.

Here is my log for the day:

8:03 AM

So it’s been only a few hours. Gaby, Cyrus, and I are at the kitchen table. Cyrus is eating breakfast. Gaby is looking at cookbooks trying to find cool recipes for snacks to make while we go super unprocessed with our food.

I have nothing to do with my hands right now. I switched over the laundry. I made coffee. I sat in silence for a few minutes on the couch.

Cyrus is keeping me busy right now. I’m feeding him the high-calorie smoothie through a meat injector syringe. He’s also being fed a Hawaiian roll with cheese, butter, and mayo. He won’t eat it by himself. I load the syringe and squirt it into his mouth each time. I pick up the sandwich and wait for him to accept a bite, like a little bird. They syringe drips everywhere. We do this every morning.

6:00 PM

We went to mom and Dad’s for our christmas celebration. Mom, of course, had a whole spread of food. My inclination was to take a picture with my phone to put on instagram. But. On the table: turkey, mashed potatoes, corn, green beans, black eye peas, cottage cheese, rolls, carrots, cheese, deer sausage, crackers, salad, maybe that was all. Now just picture it.

I guess we’ve already cheated today. Dad had the tv on. I tried not to pay attention. I had to use my phone once to look up our home phone number. I haven’t memorized it yet. Gaby struggled this morning while getting dressed; she reached over for her phone, for no reason, to see what was happening. Thankfully, it was turned off.

Erika has spent the day bargaining and trying to make sound arguments against this  whole stupid idea.

*She comes into the kitchen to wonder how her friend’s mom will know that Gaby called. It’s really causing her a lot of anxiety*

For me, I have a slight urge to turn on the tv and rewatch Bojack Horseman, while folding laundry or doing anything, really.

But right now we’re all around the dining room table. Gaby is menu planning and making a grocery list. Erika seems to be writing a card to someone, but she says she’s protesting. Cyrus is very busy with a PJ Masks activity book he got for Christmas. Me, I’m journaling. On paper. With a pen. This is another moment I might document with a picture for social media. But. Again. It’s a nice picture. Everyone is busy with a book or paper. It feels good.

I wonder, though, once I’m done journaling, how I can busy myself. We forgot to buy an alarm clock, so I’m going to ask Mom for a wake-up call. It’s only 6:15. I  to go to bed at 9:30. What to do.

***

You’ll be happy to know that after finishing up my journal entry, I folded some more laundry. We listened to the radio. Then Erika, Cyrus, and I played guitar, cuatro, and maracas for about 35 minutes. I sang off key, but it didn’t keep it from being a pretty good time. Gaby wrote several letters to people while we did this. And she tells me, right now, she started crafting her own cards, too.

Also. Erika drew several protest signs which read “Save the Internet, Save the World!”  and “Save the WIFI!”  And ” #itsnot1950

Day 1 difficulty level: Mild/Easy.

Tomorrow I go back to work and Gaby is at home with the kids since there’s no school. I hope she journals for you then.