My Personal Network

I am truly astounded by the amount of time during the day in which I am consuming media. From the second I wake up in the morning until the second I go to sleep, I am using media. My iPhone alarm wakes me up, and after that I immediately check the weather app and my text messages. I then go to class, and instead of wearing a watch to see if I am on time I always check my phone. When I had to go to a meeting at an unfamiliar campus building, I plugged it into the map app and am guided step by step to my destination. After all this technology at school, I then go to work where it is my sole job to work on the computer. I do everything from entering data to making copies to researching academia, and my eyes are sore by the end of the day from the glare of technology. I haven’t even mentioned how many times throughout the day I am checking Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook for live information or entertainment during my five minutes of free time. I find myself so easily distracted from everyday tasks and craving to check my phone for new information inputs from friends. I can’t remember the last time I sat and just twiddled my thumbs, any down time I have is spent on technology in some way or another!

 So much of my attention is focused where it shouldn't be, honestly. Before starting my homework, I sometimes check Facebook for a “little bit.” That little bit then turns into hours from click to click my attention is being drawn from pictures to funny videos to stalking someone all the way back to 2008. I think it is sad how consumed I am by technology, but I feel that there is nothing I can do to stop it. In such a technology-centered society, not having a cell phone or instant access to the rest of the world is unheard of. Why is it SO important for me to be texting my friend I saw an hour ago about the kid in my class’s weird hairdo? I am so wired it scares me.

It is unreal to think about how truly dependent I am without technology. Without a simple cell phone, I wouldn’t wake up in the morning, keep myself entertained, or know what time it was. With an iPhone, the world is literally at my fingertips. I can get an app for any and every thing imaginable. There are apps for ordering food, paying your parking meter, keeping track of bank accounts and so much more. I don’t even have to use my hands anymore, I can just yell at Siri to get me any information I desire.