The Great Laptop Famine is Over!

It was late March when I noticed something odd about my laptop. I had turned it on, but nothing was happening. "That's odd," I thought. I turned it off, then switched it back on, and it booted up like normal.

That day began the beginning of the end for my laptop. Over the next couple weeks it took more tries to get it to boot up, until finally, it was gone. RIP HPdv2.

Murphy made his entrance with his usual impeccable timing, throwing about his law of "what ever bad thing can happen, will happen, and at the most inopportune moment." My laptop died just in time for finals to begin.

Until yesterday, when my new laptop arrived, I had been ostracized from the online world, except for what I could glean from my phone or the computers on campus. But as I basked in the light of computer screen yesterday afternoon, I realized that there were some things about my internet exile that I don't want to lose.

First, without the random distractions of surfing the net, I had a ton of extra time. I got a lot of things done. My room is clean and organized. The kitchen is spotless. And I've gotten more out of my leisure time.

Secondly, I rediscovered my books. I love reading. But with college classes and Facebook addictions time really gets used up quick. Without those distractions I poured myself into some pretty rewarding books. And I want to keep that.

Lastly, I had so much more time to think. I don't know what it is about the computer, but something in its ethereal glow shuts off a part of the mind. It induces a daze-like state. Especially if a person is just wandering about the internet out of boredom. It pulls a person away from the real world, and even worse, away from themselves.

Now, I'm not raising up against computers and the internet. Trust me, coming home to an HP package in front of my door yesterday induced child-like glee. But I think that when we expect the internet to become our sole means of entertainment, social interaction, education, and exploration we miss out on the very things around us that can open our eyes to new and exciting ideas. Being away from the distraction of the internet allowed me to observe, to think, and to reawaken creative sides of my character that had drifted to sleep in the past.

Because of this, I now intend to use my computer as a tool, and not a life support system. That way my computer becomes a means of enhancing my daily life, rather than consuming it.

Anyway, I just thought I'd share some of my experiences of digital "homelessness" and say that, at last, I'm back.