Embracing Life's Moments: My Journey to Digital Detox

Hear me out. This past summer was nicknamed the season of “brain rot.” Not because we’ve all turned into zombies (though, some mornings I’ve come close), but because for the first time in years, there wasn’t one big cultural moment pulling everyone in. No Barbie-pink takeover. No must-watch series. Just scattered trends, doom-scrolling, and the kind of digital noise that leaves your mind feeling fried.

And I felt it.

Too many tabs!

Between my 9-to-5 job in sales, running social media and websites, and the hours I spend updating my own Sweet Leis Co. site, my brain started to feel like a browser with too many tabs open. Always loading, always refreshing, and never entirely at rest. I didn’t realize how badly I needed a reset.

By the end of August, I noticed what I was missing: sunsets, slow moments, and space away from screens. That’s when I began to see my weekend routines—morning walks, farmers' markets, bouquets of flowers, Pho, Saturday night card games with friends, and even a bike ride on the west side of O‘ahu—as my own quiet form of digital detox.

Weekend Resets: A Time for Connection

A very serious card game with friends

Saturday nights are for my closest friends. We gather around a table filled with food to share, from barbecue to lumpia, chips, and dip. Before long, someone pulls out the playing cards. The laughter, the playful trash talk, and the snacks between rounds; it’s the kind of reset that never makes it online but stays with us in the best way.

Then Sunday settles in with its own rhythm. My husband and I start with a church service, then we wander the farmers' market where the stalls overflow with apples, mint, cucumbers, and beets. That’s where I pick up half the ingredients for my cold-pressed juice, and where the vendors already greet us like regulars. I never leave without a bouquet of flowers wrapped in brown paper, ready to brighten the house for the week ahead.

Farmer's Market Flowers on my table

Sometimes we close the morning with steaming bowls of pho at Pho 54, our favorite spot down the street. Broth, basil, noodles, and the kind of quiet comfort you only share with people you love. No staring at a screen. No scrolling. No photos. Just food that makes you exhale.

Pork and Seafood combo (#37) at Pho54, San Jose, CA

Hawai‘i, My Reminder to Slow Down

Early morning ride at East Kapolei, Oahu, Hawaii

Earlier this month, that same pace followed me to Hawai‘i. We spent days cycling the west side of O‘ahu with no strict plan, no rushing, and no schedule to beat. Just pedaling, stopping to eat where the locals eat, and letting the day unfold naturally.

Cutting through the University of Hawaii West Oahu

No posts. No hashtags. No performance. Just bikes, beaches, and plate lunches. Exactly what my August brain needed.

What My Digital Detox Really Looked Like

That’s when it clicked! This was my digital detox. Not a retreat. Not a week without Wi-Fi. Not even a rule I set for myself.

It was juicing pineapples and ginger until bottles filled the fridge. It was braiding ribbon into leis. It was picking flowers, eating pho, riding a bike under the sun, and sitting around a table of friends playing cards late into Saturday night.

A digital detox doesn’t always mean logging off completely. Sometimes it’s about creating small detours into calm. Choosing the long way home. Putting down the phone long enough to taste your food. Watching a sunset without taking a photo.

Choosing Sunsets Over Scrolls

Maybe “brain rot summer” was the reminder we needed. We get to choose how plugged in we are.

For me, I’ll take my cold-pressed juice, a morning walk, a bouquet from the market, a hot bowl of pho, a Saturday night card game, and a bike ride along the coast over another endless scroll, any season of the year.

What about you? What’s your version of a digital detox?