Assignment 2 - iWrite - Tobias Cox

     Twenty years ago, the year was 1996! You'd have to go back farther than that to find a time without some sort of technology. That year, the revolutionary personal computer had almost become a household staple, but still had a high price tag of upwards of a couple thousand dollars. Cell phones were not so common yet, however. They existed, but only in their clunky, prehistoric way. Could you even tell the difference between a cell phone and a home telephone? Doubtful. This semi-ignorance of the cell phone and its lack of use creates a stark contrast to the world of today, where one wouldn't be caught dead without a cell phone.
     I myself am guilty. Guilty as charged. I am entirely obsessed, not just with the social aspect of a phone, but also the utilitarian part. I HAVE to know things - IMMEDIATELY! How would I live without my ability to, in my free and bored time, catch up on what's going on in this crazy political world? How could I live without immediately being able to lookup how to do something? How could I run without mapping it out first and connecting it to my fitbit to count the steps, miles, and calories burned? My life would be very different, and I think it would cause me, along with many people on this planet, to have to learn how to slow down. We have became so used to having everything immediately when we ask for it. Think about how hard it would have been to figure something out pre-internet! You would have had to take all of that time to look through a book... oh no wait before you even got to that you would have to actually go to a bookstore or to the library! And when you get to the library, can you even imagine having to use a card catalog! The list of inconveniences is enormous. So yes my life would be different - it wouldn't be mine. I don't think I would be the same person that I am now.
     Interacting though? That would really open up a can of worms. I hate to admit it, but texting makes serious things a lot easier. A lot quicker and a lot easier. I don't think I can remember the last time I forced those disgusting words out of my mouth ... "I... Am... Sorry...." No, no, no. Some things are better left communicated in a way that doesn't mean metaphorically kow-towing in front of someone you already feel bad enough for hurting. Bad news is easier too. Who wants to take the time and effort it takes to convey the sadness necessary to deliver bad news with the empathy required by common courtesy? Surely not me. But no one can see your body language behind a cell phone screen, and so we mostly assume that you are being sincere. I cannot even imagine how I would get through these difficult social tasks without my cell phone. It keeps these uncomfortable social situations to a minimum. In addition, my phone lets me talk to people all of the time. I mean, think about it. If we didn't have our friends to text, we would actually have to remember what our homework was. Surely one cannot expect me to do that. But one thing that I will admit about the phones and talking to my friends - it sure has made acquaintances a lot closer than they used to be. You can text someone all of the time, and still just be their acquaintance. The connected culture that we live in has blurred relationships and made for all kinds of social grey areas. I suppose we wouldn't have had all of that grey 20 years ago.
      If I had to choose? I would definitely choose the time period I am in. I have been molded and sculpted by this time period - who knows what my personality would have been like in the 1990s! Maybe it would have been better, but can better really be better if I am not me? Surely not. The culture of technology we live in has shaped me, for better or for worse, and I could not be happier with myself.