Part 2: Results from the Technology Fast

23 Facebook Notifications
149 emails
6 mentions on Twitter
14 texts

Even though I told my friends and family about my technology fast, I still received a lot of notifications through e-mail, Facebook, Twitter, and my phone. Above are the numbers that I tallied up today since I was given back my phone and was allowed to check my e-mail, Facebook, and Twitter.

Considering how I'm writing this blog post now, it's safe to say that even though I got a lot of missed notifications, I survived a whole week without Facebook, Twitter, e-mail, and my cell phone. Surprisingly, it wasn't as hard as I initially thought it was going to be. If anything, this fast had perfect timing since it was a really busy week with schoolwork, so I didn't need any technologies distracting me.

This week, I learned a lot about my technology usage and other people's too. I was more aware of how much my friends used their phones in certain surroundings, especially when eating at Alliot or doing homework in one of our rooms. Some of the conversations during these times were very frustrating, since I would say something and they would respond back after they had finished sending their text or checking Facebook. It was pretty hard to be around my friends who were constantly using technology, but I realized that I do the same exact thing they do. My parents always nag me for being glued to my phone and not concentrating on what they have to say to me, and for the first time, I think I would have to agree with them. I think it was good to not use technology for a week, so I could learn how to adjust to life without technology and also to get some time to chill without any distractions.  This fast taught me to change my ways in certain scenarios. Today, I have already shut off phone when I was doing homework, at the dining hall, in class, or talking to someone. I plan to continue to do those things.

One quick story that I thought I would add. Although I didn't really miss my phone that much, I must say that not having my phone made me miss one very important event. Obama came to Burlington last Friday and according to people, he drove past Founder's Hall.  Alex tried texting and calling me telling that he was driving past Founder's, but since I didn't have my phone, I didn't know about this was happening.

Anyways, I hope you all enjoyed reading about my wonderful experience without technology!