Hidding in the mountains above Lucca

Summary: I'm in the mountains above the Italian city of Lucca, and do not have easy access to the Internet. I'm using a dial-up connection that operates at glacial speeds. I'm decompressing and trying to overcome the obsession with being connected. What does it mean to be connected anyway? Am I really better off knowing that Sen. Edward Kennedy has had a seizure or can life go on without such knowledge? How precisely will I survive without being able to keep up with the NBA playoffs, never mind how the second Narnia movie did at the box office? I plan to take a walk and think about such things -- or maybe not.