Don't know what ya got...

You don't know what you got 'til it's gone. How true that saying is and it fits so many situations. Tonight it relates to something that seems so important, but really isn't. I'm talking about the internet. The world wide web. The information super highway.

The internet has woven itself into the very fiber of our lives in the 21st century. We use it for almost everything. Banking, paying bills, shopping, reading the news, checking the weather, communication, watching TV, watching movies, storing and viewing photos, and many facets of our work (I use the internet to communicate with parents and I even have an online grade book).

When I arrived home from work this evening the internet was down. It's amazing the thoughts that quickly went through my head... What am I going to do? I feel so disconnected! What if I need to e-mail someone? The truth is, the internet was only down for a matter of hours and it was no big deal. But it seemed like a big deal at the time.

What did we do BEFORE the internet? Well, we mailed our bills in (remember writing checks?). We went to the bank to do our business. We went to the store to buy our merchandise. We read the newspaper (remember when we got the news from the paper and used it for more than fish wrap?) We wrote letters and actually mailed them. We dropped our film at the drug store and picked up our photos a few days later (remember when Polaroid instant photos were all the rage?). We used the phone a lot more. We read a lot more. We used a strange contraption called a phone book (remember those?). We even spoke to people. Face to face! IN PERSON! Remember that?

The fact is, the internet is a wonderful, wonderful thing! But it has also eliminated a lot of good things in life. Some of the old ways were better. They may have been slower and less efficient, but in this age of information, speed is not always best. Call me old old fashioned, but I miss some things from the good old days.