When we were given this assignment, I knew there was
absolutely no way I could completely disconnect myself. I am currently emailing
recruiters about interviews, receiving updates on my upcoming midterm, and
helping my brother with college applications. I also knew I would not be able
to give up texting or calling because I went home this past weekend and needed
to update my parents along the way. In addition, I rely on my iphone’s GPS to
direct me home. Due to all of these factors, I knew there were some things I
simply did not have the option of giving up. Therefore, I decided I would
deprive myself of the things that were not crucial to my weekend. These things
include my Instagram, Facebook, and Snapchat account. I’m embarrassed to say it
ended up being harder than I thought. The weirdest thing was witnessing the
body language habits I have acquired through the constant access of social media and
my phone. For example, without even receiving a text or phone call, I would
reach for my phone when I was bored. It was like a nervous twitch. This assignment was especially hard since
I was home. None of my friends were in town and I desperately wanted to go on
Instagram to see what everyone was for Halloween. I also wanted to go on
Snapchat to watch snap stories of my friends who were out since I was bored on
my couch. I felt twitchy and anxious just sitting with my phone but not being
able to check these media apps. I’m sad to say I was only able to give it all
up for one full day. This was not a conscious decision, but rather out of my
subconscious habit. I went to dinner with my family and ordered a dessert that
my best friend and I always get with each other. I obliviously opened up my
snapchat and sent it to her. It was only then that I realized I had broken the
rules. Once I threw in the towel, I was ravenous. I remained glued to my phone
and began to check all of my social media like a mad woman. It was
embarrassing. Social media is so prevalent in my daily life that I felt naked without it. I was constantly bored and felt that I had way too much free time.
This assignment truly opened my eyes to how often I am on my phone. I never
want to have to do that again. I felt like I dropped out off the face of the earth because I was both digitally and physically isolated from my life in Madison.
2 comments:
I feel the exact same way Julia. I'm embarrassed to say I'm addicted to my phone. People always comment how I'm "always" on it, and it's probably true. Like you said it's a subconscious feeling. I also snap pictures of my favorite similar foods to my best friend and I subconsciously did that this weekend as well. It's become sort of innate to us and without it we feel naked and incomplete.
Technology is too addicting! You're not alone. From a social media point of view, staying away from technology isn't too hard. However, it's nearly impossible to disconnect yourself from others for a full weekend. Like you said, technology is the most important means to our communication and without it we would miss a lot of important messages.
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