Moving is one of the WORST things in
the world, especially if you can't afford movers and are stuck doing the actual
lifting and loading yourself. Over the last two weeks I have gone through the
preparation of moving (arranging transportation, meeting with building
management, etc.), packing up our house, physically loading all of our stuff into a moving truck, and then doing the
reciprocal actions at our new apartment in Yaletown. On top of this (in the
same two weeks), I went up and down Vancouver Island TWICE to visit family and started my post-degree program at
UBC. You want to know the worst part about it all was? It wasn't my impending
meltdown at family dinner, it wasn't missing yet another one of my younger
brothers' birthday celebrations... it was not having access to the internet! Not
only was our new service provider unavailable to connect our internet until
today, but the data on my cell phone plan maxed out and cut my connection - I
LITERALLY had no internet access. Do you remember what it's like to not watch Netflix? to read a real book? Can you even fathom NOT checking Facebook every 5 seconds?
Without the internet, I even had to *gasp* ask real people the directions to my Educational Theory class because
my Google Maps app wouldn't connect to the awfully sketchy outdoor Wi-Fi on
campus.
Some of you
who are reading this that have me on Facebook already know that during my
preparation for the move I actually (ironically) went on a voluntary internet
hiatus: I deleted Facebook and all messaging apps from my cell phone: this was
to prevent me from being distracted not only when visiting my family for what I
perceive will be the last time in several months but also from going insane as
dozens of messages were dinging and dinging in my ear while trying to organize
a smooth transition to the mainland. I anticipate that those of you who are on my Facebook are probably sitting
there thinking... She
wanted a break from the internet, so she got it - what's the big deal!?
What's the big deal?
1. The
voluntary hiatus was a choice! I was able to reactivate my messaging when I
needed to send out important notes to people. During the first week of my PDP
it was compulsory to check online course information... so, guess who is already behind in course work...
2. Not
having internet while unpacking is brutal: you can't listen to Imagine Dragons,
Carly Rae, or Jay-Z on YouTube or silly Vine videos to unwind. You end up
sitting there arguing with yourself over whether or not you should rearrange
your new bookshelf to be alphabetical or organized by genre.
3. There is no substitute for Pinterest! I love Pinterest: I have something like
over 4,500 pins. And I love it because I can store tons of ideas for home decor
and DIY projects (such as how to fill in pin holes so your landlord won't
notice them) that would be super useful for those who are in the process of
moving.
4. I
couldn't post annoying amounts of status updates about my move! I know tons of
people want to see our new place via online photos, but all I could send were a
few photos via text.
So, I guess
what I am getting at is that life without the internet, after having it for so
long, is actually more difficult than it looks. Because we have become accustomed
to being able to communicate and discover at the touch of a button, our
generation has become less in tune with our inquisitive side. It's harder for
us to find resources that don't come from Google or Siri. I am not saying we are anti-social or stupid,
just that we are used to operating in a certain way. So, this experience has
brought me back to old school methods of operation. I also came to realize that
without the internet at our fingertips, we focus more on where we are in that
moment and what we are doing, we actually talk to the people around us, and we
are forced to go on little "adventures" to find the answers to things
- this may even include reluctantly caving and asking your mom what the
difference is between half & half and regular cream, when do you use which,
and which store has the best prices for the products.
We honestly
take the internet for granted, but we also take our natural resources for
granted (no, not trees or water, silly) - I am talking about people. Where do
you think everything that is put onto the internet comes from? Thoughts
conjured by people.
I guess it's
all about balance!
Ashley
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