Katie Demetriades Assignment 2: iWrite

Technology has been a huge part of my life ever since fifth grade when I got my first iPod Touch and my first cell phone (yes it was a flip phone, I was in fifth grade, okay.) Of course I already had extensive experience with a computer even before I got this additional technology for Christmas. I remember having dial up when I was really young (although I didn't even understand what Internet even was at the time or why it was so slow) and an ancient 1990s computer, but I loved it any way. When we upgraded to WiFi and a laptop in 2006, I thought life could not get any better, and even then I was wrong. Technology has grown so extensively since all of us were born, and it hasn't all been positive growth. It's amazing to have any piece of information you want at the touch of a finger, but it can serve as a huge distraction. I should know, I have had too much experience with this since the invasion began.

Have you ever sat down to do your homework when suddenly your phone goes off? We've all been there. When it happens to me, I have mixed emotions. I know I should be working, but that text could be REALLY important. That notification from Instagram could be the difference between being first like/first comment or a complete nobody (shout out to the Dolan twins/KP because their notifications give me anxiety). In reality, we all know that that stuff doesn't matter (unless your mom is calling you, because if that's the case, you better pick up that phone within two or three rings, or else you're in for it later). What does matter right now is that we do well in school, so we can go to a good college, which means we have to get our work done. Society today cares WAY too much about every little thing that everyone else is doing. We always have to be in the know about someone else's life, whether that be a celebrity or someone you go to school with. We're not taking enough time to look at our OWN lives and what it is that we need to do. I am 100% guilty of this. I'm way more worried about what color KP's hair is this week than my own future (okay maybe that's a stretch, but you get the point). Some of us, including myself, want to know so much about someone else because our own reality isn't as spectacular. Instead of worrying about my own problems, I pretend like I only have to worry about someone else's smaller problems. That makes absolutely no sense, right? It's stupid, but it's true. Technology hurts us in a way where we're not worried about the right things.

Here's a different scenario: let's say you're standing in line at a restaurant and none of your friends are with you. The person in front of you looks like they want to make small talk. How do you respond? I, like many of you, will proceed to pull my phone out and pretend I am actually texting someone or doing something of importance. It's the only effective way to get people to leave you alone. But why? Why do we want people to leave us alone so badly? Maybe so it's not an awkward situation, because talking to someone is super "awkward." The thing is technology has made face to face conversations so awkward. We are able to hold "conversations" through texting and other forms of instant messaging. We don't have to face that person. We're hidden behind a screen and able to say whatever we want without feeling direct consequences (good or bad). Half the stuff you can say through text would never work the same way in real life. Take breaking up with someone. If you do it over text, you don't have to see the person's reaction and you don't have to deal with them. Once you've said what you had to say, you're free to leave the conversation. (WARNING: I do NOT recommend breaking up with someone over a text message. Because really? Do you know how that makes you look?) When you break up with someone in person, you're forced to see their immediate reaction. There's no real life emoji that can make it any better. The same thing can be applied to hundreds of other social situations. We rely on digital communication so much, it's made us weak and stupid when it comes to actually speaking to someone. An issue that older generations don't have (my grandmother would literally talk to brick wall if you let her). Because of the technology age, people from this generation don't know how to have face to face contact anymore.