sadly, it has come to this.
I've graduated.
One might ask, "Why, then, are you still in the middle of Illinois? Shouldn't you be looking for a job, moving to the city, and all that jazz?
The short answer to that is yes; I'm looking for jobs and I plan on moving to the city in the very near future. But to answer the former question with more accuracy, I'm still in the wonderful town of Bloomington, Illinois, simply, because my lease goes until the end of the month, and I - having been raised in the same neighborhood as those with Jewish roots - would feel ashamed of myself if I let myself skimp out on a lease, thus forfeiting three hundred some odd dollars on the rent for May...
All of this in mind, my housemate informed me that he would be moving out in these first couple of weeks to another apartment downtown. I realized shortly thereafter, however, that as soon as he started packing up, our wireless router also left. And so I am sitting in Ames Library, as a postgrad, surfing the web just as boringly as I would have if I were at home. It frustrates me slightly that I have to travel such distance, but free wireless that I have to seek out is better than no wireless.
But in this, I have also begun to discover a change in perspective in my own right. I sought out the internet, laptop in my backpack, until I finally could leech the web for free. In my nearly obsessive state, I have begun to wonder:
Have I really fallen so low that I depend on the internet for my entertainment?
After further analysis, I have discovered that yes, I am dependent on the internet.
Hello, my name is Thomas. And I am an internet addict.
Some cynics might ask for proof, and I realize this, and I have come amply prepared.
1.) This blog. It comes as no surprise that my need to express my dependence on the internet comes in the form of a somewhat well thought out, online blog, thus acting as both as an enabler and a cathartic.
2.) I can't go a day without watching viral material. I don't mean this in a "I pine to see infections spread" sort of a way, but I mean this in a viral video way; I have come to open my laptop, check my email, and then "check my email," which on any given day includes gmail, facebook, comcast, the Berrics, eBay, the Weather Channel Online, GQ online, GiltMan, etc. However, this series of website checking only accounts for about ten minutes of browsing.
enter YouTube and Hulu.
Anything that I have ever wanted to watch, be it television that i had not seen the night before or a stupid kid falling off a trampoline, I can get my fix on either of these sites. Early on, the Hulu commercials jokingly claimed that movie and television stars are really aliens seeking out "mushed brains" that come from a result of watching too much TV. I believe that they have succeeded.
3.) Finally, I've come to acknowledge that, in my boredom, I would much rather seclude myself in the corner of an academic library than call a friend and get a slice of pizza or go out and throw rocks at cars.
This needs to stop, if not for my health than for my sanity. (At this moment, I feel as though I am having a conversation with my computer screen...)
So how is this going to happen? How am I going to make these changes for the better? How will I avoid total internet obsession? Again, I have a list:
1.) Read more - I have a stack of books, all very difficult in nature that are taunting me from the corner of my bedroom. It's time to silence those bitches...
2.) Go outside - With the horrible weather that we have been having this is easier said than done, but I think that once the weather gets better, I'm gonna be alllllll over that quad...
3.) Eat less - This may sound strange, but as I do not have a meal plan, eating occurs in my home. So, if my math is correct, if I eat less, I have less desire to stay inside, thus having less desire to go online and check my stock portfolio (which I don't have).
4.) Workout - I went to the gym for the first time all year, and it was one of the most enjoyable hurts that I've had in a very long time. My shower has never felt so wonderful. I'll try to continue feeling this way...
and finally
5.) Call a friend - This whole essay is a direct result of my not being a social butterfly, unlike (ironically enough) some of my close friends. By reaching out to them, I know that I can experience life in it's full majesty, as horribly tacky as that sounds. So by calling, not texting, I will once again build a bridge of friendship that had long since burned down because of the internet.
... I'll do this right after I check facebook...
-t.
One might ask, "Why, then, are you still in the middle of Illinois? Shouldn't you be looking for a job, moving to the city, and all that jazz?
The short answer to that is yes; I'm looking for jobs and I plan on moving to the city in the very near future. But to answer the former question with more accuracy, I'm still in the wonderful town of Bloomington, Illinois, simply, because my lease goes until the end of the month, and I - having been raised in the same neighborhood as those with Jewish roots - would feel ashamed of myself if I let myself skimp out on a lease, thus forfeiting three hundred some odd dollars on the rent for May...
All of this in mind, my housemate informed me that he would be moving out in these first couple of weeks to another apartment downtown. I realized shortly thereafter, however, that as soon as he started packing up, our wireless router also left. And so I am sitting in Ames Library, as a postgrad, surfing the web just as boringly as I would have if I were at home. It frustrates me slightly that I have to travel such distance, but free wireless that I have to seek out is better than no wireless.
But in this, I have also begun to discover a change in perspective in my own right. I sought out the internet, laptop in my backpack, until I finally could leech the web for free. In my nearly obsessive state, I have begun to wonder:
Have I really fallen so low that I depend on the internet for my entertainment?
After further analysis, I have discovered that yes, I am dependent on the internet.
Hello, my name is Thomas. And I am an internet addict.
Some cynics might ask for proof, and I realize this, and I have come amply prepared.
1.) This blog. It comes as no surprise that my need to express my dependence on the internet comes in the form of a somewhat well thought out, online blog, thus acting as both as an enabler and a cathartic.
2.) I can't go a day without watching viral material. I don't mean this in a "I pine to see infections spread" sort of a way, but I mean this in a viral video way; I have come to open my laptop, check my email, and then "check my email," which on any given day includes gmail, facebook, comcast, the Berrics, eBay, the Weather Channel Online, GQ online, GiltMan, etc. However, this series of website checking only accounts for about ten minutes of browsing.
enter YouTube and Hulu.
Anything that I have ever wanted to watch, be it television that i had not seen the night before or a stupid kid falling off a trampoline, I can get my fix on either of these sites. Early on, the Hulu commercials jokingly claimed that movie and television stars are really aliens seeking out "mushed brains" that come from a result of watching too much TV. I believe that they have succeeded.
3.) Finally, I've come to acknowledge that, in my boredom, I would much rather seclude myself in the corner of an academic library than call a friend and get a slice of pizza or go out and throw rocks at cars.
This needs to stop, if not for my health than for my sanity. (At this moment, I feel as though I am having a conversation with my computer screen...)
So how is this going to happen? How am I going to make these changes for the better? How will I avoid total internet obsession? Again, I have a list:
1.) Read more - I have a stack of books, all very difficult in nature that are taunting me from the corner of my bedroom. It's time to silence those bitches...
2.) Go outside - With the horrible weather that we have been having this is easier said than done, but I think that once the weather gets better, I'm gonna be alllllll over that quad...
3.) Eat less - This may sound strange, but as I do not have a meal plan, eating occurs in my home. So, if my math is correct, if I eat less, I have less desire to stay inside, thus having less desire to go online and check my stock portfolio (which I don't have).
4.) Workout - I went to the gym for the first time all year, and it was one of the most enjoyable hurts that I've had in a very long time. My shower has never felt so wonderful. I'll try to continue feeling this way...
and finally
5.) Call a friend - This whole essay is a direct result of my not being a social butterfly, unlike (ironically enough) some of my close friends. By reaching out to them, I know that I can experience life in it's full majesty, as horribly tacky as that sounds. So by calling, not texting, I will once again build a bridge of friendship that had long since burned down because of the internet.
... I'll do this right after I check facebook...
-t.
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