I've Been Cleansed. (I Think)

My video games cleanse has come to an end. It's time to write about it a little bit and reflect on how I did.

I managed to say away from games at home for the most part. There was one night right at the end there when some friends came over and we played a few for entertainment. But with 3 people I figured it was social, and it was also the 30th, so I figured that close to the end of the month it was okay.

I didn't manage to kick the habit completely, and I don't think I ever could. I've been playing games so long that they're basically part of my being. I don't think I could ever give them up entirely. But I've proved to myself that I can take a break, and that I'm not tied down by them. Like anything else, it's mind over matter. I can play them, or I can not. The choice is always up to me.

I went out a bit more and spent more time with some friends. And I made a few more long distance phone calls than I normally would. It was nice being able to get in touch with a few friends. I think I'll do it more often.

I didn't get anything productive done though. In the entire month I think I spent a whopping 4 hours working on portfolio stuff. Even without games, most days I still wasn't in the mood to do anything that would require thinking. At the end of the day I ultimately just want to turn my brain off and recharge.

And while I was able to avoid games at home, I found that I usually just filled that same time watching television, which is far less interesting than a game. I could have avoided that too, except that a friend lent me the final season of Battlestar Galactica on DVD. 2 episodes a night for 2 weeks really ate through my month.

So what have I learned? Well, not much really. I guess on some levels I feel better about myself. But in terms of being productive there's still work to be done. Maybe that will by my next goal.