As I've written about time and time again, I am not the biggest fan of technology–particularly when it pertains to social media. It's isolating, numbing, distracting, and downright unnecessary. However, for all the griping and groaning I do about it, I'm just the same as everybody else. As I write this, I'm answering texts, listening to music on Spotify, scrolling through GroupMe messages and checking Facebook. I may hate technology, but I never said I was immune to its powers.

However, I was excited when my acting teacher gave us our latest assignment: to go 12 hours without technology. Finally! This was my chance to live without the distractions of technology and just live freely! It wouldn't be able to catch me up and draw me in, because it would simply be off-limits for one day.

I picked out the perfect day–I was going to a wedding in Lake Tahoe with my family, and that seemed like a perfect day to be technology-free: No homework due the next day, no class, and no friends to be texting about plans. I would truly be able to just enjoy the company of my family and the nature around me.

Well, things are actually not all rainbows and fairytales, as it turns out. I was surprised at the amount of planning I had to do just to prepare for a mere 12 hours without technology. I gave my parents a heads-up, so they would know that I would have to stick with one of them at all times if they wanted to contact me.

I let the members of my a cappella group know, because I'm the PR director and essentially, my entire job for them is to run social media. I even let the people know whom I frequently texted that I wouldn't be responding. I prepared to not know the time when I woke up, I prepared to go for a jog without listening to music, I braced myself to not have a phone at a potentially very boring wedding.

By the time I'd done all this preparation, I was really frustrated. Since when did I need all this stuff?! Why should a lack of technology completely interrupt my whole day? Well, once I'd gotten past the initial planning stage (and subsequent aggravation), I was ready to do my 12 hours. They went a little something like this:

8 a.m.

I woke up from a nightmare about a tsunami. This happens to me at least once a week, but I always forget the psychological significance. I reached for my phone to Google it and stopped myself. I felt kind of weird waking up without my phone, since I always check it in the morning. I knew my friends had been at our sorority invite the night before, so I wondered if I was missing out on any funny drunk texts.

10 a.m.

My family and I headed into the Olympic Village at Tahoe to find some breakfast. Since I hadn't checked the weather on my phone, I severely underestimated the kind of clothes I would need (thanks, SoCal). I was freezing. It didn't feel weird not to take my phone to the Olympic Village, though. I've done short family outings where I've left my phone at home before, so this wasn't a big deal.

12 p.m.

We headed up on a gondola ride into the mountains. I used my mom's phone to take a picture on the way up. I still didn't "miss" my phone at this point, per se. I was enjoying just hanging out with my family. However, the rest of them weren't making my job any easier. My sister was Snapchatting up a storm, my dad was playing music and my mom was posting a Facebook status. While they were doing this, I kind of just stared blankly into the distance. The generational gap is not as real as one would think!

2 p.m.

I was starting to feel the urge to check my phone, at this point. Did my friend kiss that guy last night?! I needed to organize a ride from the airport tomorrow. The president of my a cappella group needed to know I'd be missing rehearsal. I needed to see Invite pictures on Instagram! I hated myself for it, but I was really wanting my phone.

4 p.m.

My family and I headed to the wedding. It was a beautiful wedding. I was totally content not to have my phone, because I felt super present and could really just focus on the couple and the beautiful mountain setting. Tears may or may not have been shed.

6 p.m.

I went on about my day, drank a little wine and enjoyed myself and the company of my entire extended family. I was better at making small talk with cousins and aunts and uncles, because I couldn't hide behind my phone.

I won't lie, by the time 8 p.m. rolled around, I was ready to get my technology back. I was glad to have gone a whole day without technology, but it didn't make me feel better about myself. Although there had never been a point during the day when I needed my phone or laptop, I had felt several addiction-like urges to want them.

I didn't miss out on anything important–a few texts, some Facebook notifications, but they were all waiting for me when I got back. Nobody freaked out and thought I had died. I didn't miss any huge bits of news. And I had never needed my phone for anything throughout the day; I was always surrounded by people who had theirs.

I wanted this experience to make me feel more present and to allow me to fully embrace my time with my family, but it didn't make that big of a difference. In fact, my family was on their screens quite a bit, so sometimes I was just tuned out.

To be honest, I don't see the need for anyone to recreate this exercise. If anything, it's good to see how much you rely on your phone, and to show you how much you really don't need it. However, I don't think it will make me use my phone any less in the future.

I have to come to terms with the fact that this is a digital age, and addiction-like symptoms are part of the deal. As humans, we crave connection, and that includes connection to people who aren't physically with us. I just hope that I can learn to be content with the people who are physically around me. If not, perhaps I'll just become a hermit who lives in the woods with her pet bears and bunnies.