After Week Without the Web (WWW), I found my room very… clean. The dresser was dusted, the mirrors were Windexed, and the floor was vacuumed. With no Facebook stalking or Twitter surfing allowed, I needed something to kill the vacant time slots in my day – so I cleaned.
But a clean room isn’t all I got out of Hofstra’s Week Without the Web. I also had a clean mind. I felt refreshed and rejuvenated, calm and collected, care-free and burden-free. Jealousy over a girl writing on my crush’s wall? Gone. Aggravation over a party I wasn’t invited to? Gone. Exhaustion after too many distracted hours on the web? Gone!
Social media and the world wide web are supposed to make our lives easier but, in fact, they do the opposite. They make us feel emotions we wouldn’t normally feel and they hinder our abilities to be proactive.
But I’d be lying if I told you I didn’t cheat. I simplyhad to check my email. I had initially told myself I wouldn’t, but after seeing the number 15 beside the envelope on my phone, I had to give in. There was too much that I’d be missing without it.
That being said, the web isn’t totally awful. If I’d been asked to gather quotes for my internship, I would’ve been at a loss. I rely heavily on social media to complete the tasks I’m assigned and without it, I’d have to take an entirely different approach.
I also don’t know where I’d be without my email. Far too much communication goes on within it and there are times when a phone call just can’t do it justice.
I learned both the importance and the unimportance of the internet during the week that left me without it. On the one hand, I realized how essential email has become. It’s an outlet that allows for the easy transmission of information and the speedy delivery of such.
On the other hand, I saw how much stronger relationships become without the presence of social media. I get it – it helps us connect with people who we otherwise wouldn’t. But without it, we’re forced to step out from behind the computer and actually interact with those people.
I was surprised at how easy it was for me to unplug. I was sure I’d be facing withdrawals but it actually encouraged me to rely less on these avenues and more on personal interaction.
I’m so grateful for the School of Communication’s attempt to disconnect students from the web. If you didn’t participate, no harm lost. However, if you did, you may find yourself viewing the internet very much in the same way as I have. Important, yes. But can we live without it? I guess we’ll never really know.