  This paper presents an autoethnography of my experiences living without a
mobile phone. What started as an experiment motivated by a personal need to
reduce stress, has resulted in two voluntary mobile phone breaks spread over
nine years (i.e., 2002-2008 and 2014-2017). Conducting this autoethnography is
the means to assess if the lack of having a phone has had any real impact in my
life. Based on formative and summative analyses, four meaningful units or
themes were identified (i.e., social relationships, everyday work, research
career, and location and security), and judged using seven criteria for
successful ethnography from existing literature. Furthermore, I discuss factors
that allow me to make the choice of not having a mobile phone, as well as the
relevance that the lessons gained from not having a mobile phone have on the
lives of people who are involuntarily disconnected from communication
infrastructures.
