Blog Assignment # 13

        For this blog assignment I chose to do option 3. I thought about doing the other options (I even already have read the entire book of Rafe Esquith's There are no Shortcuts); however, I thought option 3 would be the most challenging and I looked at as a dare. I was not able to use any electronic devices for 24 hours. If I messed up, then I would have to do it again.
        I will go ahead and admit that I had to do it over again. I tried doing this assignment Monday. Things were going great until I realized I had a presentation due in one of my classes and I had not yet printed out the worksheets. I ended up having to get on a computer and try this assignment again. Instead of starting my hours over right then, I decided to wait a little longer because I really wanted to check my email. This was an unsuccessful day. I then tried again on Wednesday. This is the day that I actually made it without technology.
        Wednesday morning I woke up late. I was not sure if a digital alarm clock was considered use of technology for this assignment or not. I decided not to chance it. If I was going to do this assignment, I wanted to feel good about it and try to stay away from technology as much as possible. This was probably a mistake since I woke up 30 minutes late. I usually set 3 alarms on my phone and 2 on my digital clock (I am not a morning person). Since I was not able to use my cell phone either, I had my mom wake me up before she left for work. I ended up falling back asleep. I knew it was going to be a long day. Instead of waking up, checking my Facebook, and eating breakfast while watching TV....I simply ate at the kitchen table. While I was eating breakfast I started to look at my kitchen. Blenders, mixers, coffee pot, microwave, dishwasher, fridge, toaster....all of these things are considered technology. It was crazy to think that I never considered these common household objects as technology. They all require electricity though. 

        I thought I would spend my night watching the Jurassic Park trilogy. I quickly remembered that was not possible for today. Instead, I felt like I was living in the Jurassic time period. Honestly, I thought this assignment would be pretty easy. I thought to myself, "Well, I can do this. I hardly watch any TV and I don't need a phone for one day." I was so wrong about this. I warned my parents and friends that I would not text or answer their calls for one day. My mom quickly forgot about this and called my sister in a panic because my phone was turned off. Thankfully my sister remembered though. When my mom came home from work, she was not very happy about my phone being turned off though.
        Not being able to check the news, Facebook, or my email was a pain. Not watching TV was not so bad; I could go without it for a day. I thought about going to the park for a walk. Well, I decided against that since I could not listen to my iPod. I considered finishing up a quilt I was making, but that would require the sewing machine. Darn it. I then figured I would just read all day. That is exactly what I did. I sat at home and reread The Hunger Games. I found myself being jealous of the Capital and even District 12 for being able to watch TV, even though they were watching children kill each other. After I was done reading, I thought I would go to bed early. Not doing anything all day was pretty tiring. I had forgotten about not being able to use technology at night. I always either sleep listening to music or watching reruns of the Nanny on TV. Since this was not possible, I sat in bed and tried to daydream until I eventually fell asleep. The next morning I woke up and checked my email, Facebook, text messages, listened to music, watched TV, and even set my alarm clock back to normal.
       I've learned so much by doing this assignment. First of all, I did not know how much technology my house actually contained. Before, I only considered the internet, cell phone, and TV to be technology. When actually thinking about it, every room in  my house has some kind of technology in it. Another thing I thought about was how helpful technology is. I was not able to hear about the news or know if my family and friends were okay that day. It worried me that something could have happened and I would not know about it. I also considered the possibility that one of my teachers could have wrote me an email and assigned a homework assignment. Thankfully, none of this happened, but it did make me question the "what if?" without technology.
        Something else I learned about technology is that it's not so bad for children to use. I knew this before, but most people will say, "Technology makes kids lazy!" when talking about why they are against it. However, I have never had such a lazier day than Wednesday. I didn't want to go walking because I wanted my iPod. I couldn't sew because my sewing machine is technology. I simply sat on the couch all day and read books. Yes, reading is great for kids. But taking some time to walk in the park or do arts and crafts is also great for kids.
I have learned not to take these things for granted. I am so happy to be able to use a computer again and type this assignment. Last Wednesday was the most boring day of my life.