For the sake of journalism, I went one day without personal technology; no iPhone, no iPod, no iPad, no computer, no CD player, no camera. I documented my day moment by moment with (gasp!) pen and paper.
6:00 a.m.: I wake up. I automatically reach for my phone to turn off my alarm. Then I realize my alarm isn’t ringing, and my phone is turned off.
7:30 a.m.: I get in my car to go to school and instinctively attempt to plug in my phone so I can listen to music. Without my phone, though, it’s not working very well. I drive to school in silence.
7:45 a.m.: I arrive at school. I would check my phone to see what time it is and whether I’m on time, but I remember that I don’t have my phone and prevent myself from reaching into my empty pocket and looking like an idiot.
7:55 a.m.: Spotlight starts. We talk about days we are all free to sing the national anthem at an Allen Americas game, but I don’t know what days I’m free because my calendar is on my phone. I’m staring to realize that I use my phone a lot more than I thought I did, and for a lot more than texting and calling.
8:55 a.m.: I get to my first period class, English, and lucky for me, we’re doing a timed writing today. On computers. I am resigned to writing my essay on paper. Hello hand cramp.
10:00 a.m.: I’m in art class, working on a piece, when some of my classmates start talking about Jersey Shore. My normal response is to put in my headphones and listen to music until the madness ends, but I can’t today, so I have to grin and bear it.
10:40 a.m.: I’m in newspaper class, the source of this misery. The Mac sitting in front of my chair tempts me, but I have gotten this far, and I will NOT give in to technology this early! Besides, Carly Parkinson sits next to me, and she knows I can’t use technology today. There’s no way I’m getting on a computer.
1:00 p.m.: In Chinese class, I am yet again confronted with a computer on my desk. I sit and stare at it all period, but I don’t touch it. Surprisingly, it’s getting easier to ignore the urge to use technology.
3:30 p.m.: It’s eighth period, Physics. The rest of my day has passed without incident, and I just want to go home. But of course, it’s not that easy. We have to do some calculations on a worksheet, and the batteries in my calculator are corroded, so it doesn’t work. I’m not exactly sure if I’m even allowed to use it today anyway. I have to do the math in my head. Since I haven’t done real math without a calculator since about 6th grade, this might be a bit of a challenge.
4:10 p.m.: I’ve made it a whole school day without technology! I am a champion! Well, I still have the rest of the day to go, but I am really proud of myself!
4:20 p.m.: Rehearsal for the Music Man starts. This won’t be an issue for me since we’re not allowed to have our phones out at all to begin with, but I’m meeting my dad for dinner after rehearsal ends and I can’t contact him to plan a time and place. This might be a problem. Luckily, my dad comes to the school almost every day to build the set for the musical and he’s still there when rehearsal ends. Potential headache: avoided.
The rest of the day goes by uneventfully, since I’m at home and have no need to use my phone. I go to bed really happy with myself, and while I found out I needed to use my phone more than I thought I did, by the end of the night, I didn’t even miss my technology.
