Today's Technology

How much technology is too much? A few days ago, I accidently left my cell phone at home. Panic came over me as I was halfway to work and realized I didn’t have my phone. It was too late to turn around and go back. The first thing I did when I got to work was borrow a co-worker’s phone so I could text my kids and let them know I had left my phone at home. I didn’t want them to be texting me with no response. I knew it could cause anxiety, especially in my youngest, if I didn’t respond to their texts. Later that day I had someone tell me that she didn’t even OWN a cell phone. I was shocked. How can you get by WITHOUT one?? Then I really started to think about it. What would it be like to be ‘unplugged’ like that?

I got home that night and I started looking around and thinking about the technology that invades our daily lives. In our family, ever member has a cell phone, all 5 of us. The justification for the phones is varied, but we all feel that they are a vital necessity of our lives. My kids and I text each other often thru-out the day. While I used to turn my phone off at night when I returned home...I find that over the last couple of years, I have abandoned that habit and my phone is on 24/7. I even put it next to my bed at night just in case. Never mind that I have a land line phone next to my bed as well--I am still worried about being away from my cell phone. On the weekends, its not unusual for me to wake during the night and check my phone in case one of the kids has sent me a text and I didn’t hear it.

Then there is of course computer technology. In our home, we have 4 computers. When our oldest is home from college, he brings with him 2 more computers. One desktop computer is designated as ‘Mom and Dad’s’. It sits on a desk in the corner of our room. Another desktop computer is designated as the ‘Kids’ and it sits upstairs in the bonus area so that the kids can do homework on it. Then the laptop resides on the kitchen counter. This one is designated as mine because I can access my work computer from this one. However, our youngest dominates this one as we like to have her only accessing the internet where we can plainly view what she is up to. Then the netbook is a relatively new addition. Its my favorite one, small, compact. Perfect for traveling and hauling to the sofa at night for when I want to sit and write, or surf the internet. We have more computers than people! At least one computer in the house runs 24/7. We get home at night, often the first thing we do is check our e-mail. I don’t think an evening goes by that we each don’t access a computer for something. We use computers to learn Spanish, look up recipes, do homework, handle bookkeeping tasks, socially network, organize finances, and correspond with a variety of people. In our house, having multiple computers has become, dare I say it?, a necessity.

So does having all this technology available make our lives easier or more difficult? When we travel, we take time to check our e-mail and stay in touch. Our phones are set so that no matter where we are at in the United States we can still call home for free. The days of leaving town and everything behind have gone out the window. I can’t decide if this is a good thing or not. A few weeks ago I was with my girlfriends for our annual weekend. Between the four of us, we had 3 cell phones, 1 smart phone, and 3 laptops. We all happily talked to each other as we checked e-mails, surfed for a restaurant to go to, looked up maps, and shared online photos. It was a completely normal thing to do...it would have been abnormal to NOT have a computer along. Honestly, I am beginning to be intimidated by the thought of traveling to places where I can’t have access–how pathetic is that? Recently our family took a cruise. We knew we would be without our phones and computer access. At first we were excited with the idea of disconnecting for 9 days. Then when we boarded, we broke down and bought computer access time. But, we still didn’t have cell phone access. Baby steps, baby steps.

I wonder, are we that far behind South Korea where internet addiction is a rampant problem? South Korea has the distinction of being the most wired country on the planet. Recently there was a story in the news, where a couple had let their 3 month old starve to death. Apparently they only fed the child once a day in between marathon sessions at their local internet café. When they were finally charged, the father said that he was ‘sorry his daughter had gotten sick’. I find this disturbing on so many levels. How can you become so addicted to being on the computer that you forget to feed your newborn?

For now, I vow to try to keep my computer and phone time in check. Incidentally, in the time I have written this, I have received 5 texts, 8 e-mails and engaged in an instant messaging conversation.