Texting in Your Sleep - Our Ties to Technology

What is it about technology? It attracts us like bees to pollen-rich flowers. Just walk into any local Best Buy and watch people. They stop and stare at the latest LED TVs like they just discovered Montezuma's Treasure.

I don't understand it really. Yes, it is a very nice televsion, Those beautiful images of butterflies and mountain ranges do look pretty incredible on a five thousand dollar television. But do we really need super-sharp resolution and mind-blowing colors just to watch Biggest Loser or American Idol?

Okay, well perhaps some of us do.

What really annoys me about technology is the fickle nature of every single piece of electronic equipment I come in contact with. I believe there is a secret communication system between these devices and they have targeted certain people who are on to their subversive ways--people like me.

I recently had trouble with a module in my car. As soon as they'd replace one module, another would fail. This has me convinced that these modules are designed to fail at certain intervals, which keeps you running back to the shop for service on your vehicle.

My van has been reminding me for the last year to service the 'Park Assist System'. Its stupid reminder bell goes off at the most inconvenient times, like when I'm trying to navigate off the curb so I can parallel park.

Seriously, how did we manage to do anything before technology came along. Were we not able to park our cars? Were we not able to get up off the couch and change the channel on the TV? Were we not able to move the toothbrush back and forth across our teeth?

I have a Blackberry. Yes, I have a serious crackberry problem. I didn't realize how serious it was until I woke up one night and realized I was texting in my sleep. If I go out of the house and leave it behind, I feel like I've entered an alien atmosphere and that at any moment my lungs will seize up and I will no longer be able to breathe. My palms start to sweat and I hyperventilate. It isn't pretty.

So how did we manage all those years without a continuous link to the outside world? Don't get me wrong, like I said earlier, I love my Blackberry. It just seems odd that we cannot go even a few minutes without texting, checking e-mail, surfing the internet or calling someone. I propose we have a National No Technology Day to help us overcome our ties to technology, even if just for one day. I mean, if we're not careful, we're going to end up in Terminator. We're practically there already.

So let's have a national day without technology. We could call it NaNoTech Day!!

On NaNoTech Day we have to give up all forms of technology including phones, cell phones, computers, television, pagers, etc. for twenty-four hours. Could you do it? I'm not sure I could.

I need to stop, my toaster is calling me. Let me know what day of the year would be good for NaNoTech Day.

Until tomorrow,
I remain....
Tied to my Blackberry.