Media Fast

Living in such a technologically advanced society, it can seem impossible to let go of these devices. For 24 hours I was asked to not interact with books, magazines, newspapers, music, radio, television, videogames or any form of the Internet. At first I didn't realize how much I would be giving up. In my backpack alone I carry my cellphone, my laptop, my iPad, and my Gameboy Color video game. Each of my devices has access to the Internet as well. I knew it was graded so I locked the devices all away in my safe at 8am saturday morning and began the media fast.

After breakfast I had to think of a way to spend my last twenty-two hours of media fasting. I decided that I would go for a jog in Boston commons because outdoor exercise seemed like the only way to have fun without my Internet devices. In the commons I was able to find a pick-up flag football game that I could join however I got really muddy and eventually went home and took a shower. When I was officially ready to move one to the days next activities, I noticed that it was already 4:30. Every Saturday I have dinner in Cambridge with my girlfriend at 5:30, so I rushed over to the train stop and left for my date. We walked around the town as I told her about my day and how hard my project had been. All day I had been reaching into my pocket to check my phone, and then realizing it was locked away in my room. It was then that I realized how much of my life was consumed by the media. I would never have exercised or had social conversations with my friends if I had access to my media devices.

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