Dear good and gracious God,
I am finally feeling like an actual adult; I just moved into my very first apartment in the city. I accepted a job downtown, got my last name plastered on a mailbox, and even got to shop for real kitchenware. Although I feel like I am moving-on-up in the world, I faced a huge dilemma this week - My apartment does not have Wi-Fi. Apparently, the previous tenants did not have a router installed in the apartment. For over a week now, I have been living without the ability to check my email or even… watch Netflix.
Dunn Dunn Dunn.
Now, I know what you might be thinking. People lived for centuries without Amazon Prime and Twitter. Why is she complaining? Why is she ungrateful? Although I admit that I did find it inconvenient to have to walk five blocks in the pouring rain to the nearest hotspot to watch "The Bachelorette" (I am a very dedicated fan, so don’t judge), I am surprisingly enjoying not being so connected with the world.
I am definitely frustrated that I cannot read my brother’s travel blog or order ahead at Starbucks from the comfort of my bed, but I love not feeling pressured to respond to Facebook comments or take Snapchats when something exciting happens. I am truly learning to relax and appreciate silence. I do things like cook, clean and read to simulate my mind instead of sitting on a futon for hours watching corgi videos. Therefore, I am getting more chores done during the day, making me less anxious and nervous. Additionally, this situation has forced me to get out of the house and enjoy what the city has to offer. Prior to this fiasco, I was often complaining that I never had time during the school year to explore the Chicago area. I kept putting it off because I always wanted to be focused on school. If this situation would not have happened, I know that I would never have had gotten myself out of the Rogers Park neighborhood.
Believe me when I say that I never thought that I would last without Wi-Fi. Not only am I addicted to social media, iMessage, and streaming TV shows, but being connected and available at all times is a part of my job: most occupations expect employees to be accessible when they are not on the clock. I never realized how much time and energy technology demands from us, both in our free time and in the workplace. Our constant need to be moving at all times and be connected translates from our jobs to our homes, affecting our relationships with family, friends, and, ultimately, ourselves. Kids, moral of the story: It’s okay to be in airplane mode. It’s okay to read something that’s not 140 characters or less.
God, thank you for teaching me that I can survive without Wi-Fi. I pray that the rest of my generation can learn to shut down every once in awhile, too.
