The free Internet at my apartment complex is down again for at least the fifth time this week.
I feel angry and confused, and, frankly, this all makes me feel a little pathetic.
For those of us who are members of the 18 to 24 age bracket, the Internet is something vastly taken for granted.
We are a campus of avid smartphone users and social media mavens.
We use the Internet to communicate with one another, to entertain ourselves, to work and to micromanage our lives down to a science.
We apply for jobs, submit homework assignments, check our bank statements and Skype with far-away family and friends through the magic of the World Wide Web.
When I’m used to having this magical world at my fingertips and it suddenly vanishes, I can’t help but be rendered helpless, whining to my roommate and pacing aimlessly around the room.
This might sound highly dramatic and distinctly #FirstWorldProblems, but I can say with confidence there isn’t a person on this campus who doesn’t feel my pain. The numerous Tweets and Facebook updates of desperation that clog my feed lamenting the inadequacy of IU Secure is proof of this.
The Internet is a valuable tool and resource. It allows us to accomplish tasks and maintain relationships with an efficiency that wasn’t possible in the pre-Internet era.
One can’t help but wonder what we’re missing by being so Internet-reliant.
For example, it’s a beautiful day outside. The mugginess and oppressive heat of a Midwest summer have subsided for a few short days, and I would love nothing more than to put on some clothes, step out of my apartment and take just 45 minutes of my day to go for a soothing run. Lord knows that after this weekend I could afford to burn off some calories and reexamine my life choices.
But I felt bound to this Macbook, restarting my computer, unplugging and re-plugging my router and incessantly refreshing my Mozilla Firefox tabs for the last two hours.
It would be comical if it weren’t so sad.
Rather than continuing to lament this hopefully temporary loss of technology, I think I’m going to let this serve as a wake-up call.
With the conveniences of the Internet came a loss of certain human pleasures: the rush of spending time in nature, the simplicity of a chat with friends, the joy of walking to the neighborhood bank and chatting with the teller as you cash your check.
Going without the Internet is inconvenient, but it shouldn’t feel so strenuous to, you know, read an actual book. Or to write your reminders on slips of paper instead of online calendars.
We’re all lucky to have technology to make our lives more convenient. But when it falls through, it seems that sometimes instead of the giant zeitgeist of pain and sorrow that appears to take place, having no Internet might actually be a blessing in disguise.
— kabeasle@indiana.edu
