Sorry for the late post, but I was on my no Internet diet yesterday. From 2 pm Friday to 2 pm Saturday, I was determined not to go on the Internet or social media sites like Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube. I thought it was going to be hard to be honest. My daily routine has included Facebook status updates, looking at pictures my friends and family have posted on Instagram, and viral videos on YouTube. I spend a lot of my time on the Internet and I didn't know how much of my day was spent on the Internet until I had to stop. What was I going to do to fill the hours that had just opened up for me? Could I make it? I was determined to see this little experiment through, so although I did get urges to check Facebook or the Internet, I resisted. I survived!
So how did I spend my "free" time? Well, I read for my English class. I think this was one of the very few moments when I was grateful for homework. I had something to fill the hours. I also spent a couple of hours watching TV and continued reading until I was tired and went to bed.
Going a day without the Internet was not as hard as I thought it was going to be. Maybe it's because I spent my time doing other things that took my mind away from the Internet. My day was quiet. There were no Facebook status updates, emails, silly cat videos, or pictures of food. It was just me and the book. There was nothing to distract me from reading my book or getting some homework done. It was a peaceful time without the Internet. But one thing that I missed the most was not being able to text or talk to my mother. I am very close to her and I usually text or call her to talk to her about my day. From all the distractions that the Internet has to offer, it does have its positive points too, like connecting people. I guess that's what I miss most from my no-Internet diet. I miss being able to talk to people that I am not physically there with. I realize that before the Internet people still were able to connect to each other, but the Internet has made it easier.
This little experiment has taught me to stay away from the Internet and its distractions. It's important to live life outside the computer and not online. But it has also showed me that having Internet is a positive thing because it can connect people from anywhere in the world in just a few clicks. And for this reason, I don't think living an Internet-free world would ever be possible again.
2 comments:
Hey Whitney! it is interesting that it takes an assignment like this in order for us to attempt detaching from the internet. Like what is it about other days? Why can we not bring ourselves to just unplug when we see that it can be such a beneficial thing? I'm glad your time off the grid was enjoyable; imagine how much reading we would get done if we did not have the internet! Then again, I wonder if we would be less smart without internet. it may be a huge distraction but the decentralization of knowledge it has created has got to be worth something!
Hello Whitney. As always, I enjoy reading your posts, not to mention the inviting color scheme. Your clever reference of having a "no-Internet diet" led me to find the definition of diet. Two definitions I found on Merriam-Webster for diet that particularly stood out to me were, "habitual nourishment" and "something provided or experienced repeatedly." I find that internet usage has a tendency away from nourishment. Of course, nourishment is relative; however, I feel that the majority of time spent using the internet is not used for enrichment or any gain. For example, I've asked a few friends their thoughts on Crimea, the Ukraine, and its implications. Bueller. Bueller. The responses clearly were derived from reading perhaps a few opening sentences of an article, or just the title. Is the internet widely nourishing to a user? I will speak for myself here, but why can I easily spend twenty minutes lost in Facebook, but reading an article on the Federal Reserve Board put me to sleep? Is this misaligned values? Is Facebook, Snapchat, Instagram, a reflection of a preference for instant gratification over delayed?
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