Carolina OchoaProf. ErinAudio Essay1-29-15Technology: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly I was in the 6th grade when I got my first computer. It was an expensive HP desktop with a gigantic flat screen monitor and a black keyboard. My family could never afford such a thing. It was an unnecessary luxury, but that changed. A computer became necessary, practically required for the world were living in. A computer was definitely required for me. In middle school, assignments were due that demanded typed instead of written words and reports had to include various online resources. Not to mention, vital class notes and materials that were reachable via online websites. There was something else that made a computer seem essential to me, a more superficial reason. I had the desire of being socially up-to-date with everyone else. Kids in my class were on the same page with the digital age, while I was left behind in the Stone Age. But that changed, once I had my HP. This new world of excitement and wonder was accessible to me now, and I was ready to explore. Fast-forward to my freshman year of high school, when my hoop earrings were as big as my face and my hair was curly and slathered in hair gel. MySpace was dead. Facebook was in. People were posting their lives on a wall and conversations were typed instead of spoken. Interactions became digitized. Despite all this, the use of computers and technology did not seem like an issue to me. In fact, it was a solution. Researching became faster and easier. Reaching people became faster and easier. Everything and everyone was a click away. Computers didnt seem bad to me; they were a friend. There was nothing wrong with them.Fast-forward to my junior year of high school, when I no longer wore hoop earrings, my hair was straight, and passing paper notes during class was replaced by sending text messages. The old ways were replaced by the modern ways. In with the new, out with the old, just like with my first computer. My first HP was now replaced with a new HP laptop. Once I had a whiff of that new laptop smell, I was in love. I was so much in love that I didnt notice how much time I spent on my laptop. I was unaware that I chose Twitter over my family; that I cancelled plans with friends just to lie in bed, hypnotized by my Pinterest board. I was blinded to the fact that my day revolved around my shiny, new laptop. I was falling into the vortex of being disconnected from the actual world and being plugged into the virtual world, but I didnt even know it. The realization of it crashed down on me when my familys Internet was cut off for two weeks, leaving my laptop utterly useless. I was disconnected, pissed off, and going through virtual withdrawal. During the first week, I scrambled around trying to get a hit of the Internet whenever possible. My family bore the brunt of my fury. I unleashed my rage and aggression unjustly on them. Once I had reached full-blown bitch mode, I saw that there was a problem.This epiphany of mines appeared when my mom and I were fighting. What do you want me to do?! I need to use a computer that actually works! I barked at my mom as she asked me where I was heading. It was about 10 oclock at night and I was going to use a friend's computer, unable to remain away from the precious Internet. My mom prohibited me to leave the house. She said she it was too late to be out. If you really cared about me, then youd let me go! Or at least would have married somebody capable of fixing this stupid problem! We argued for another couple of minutes. I dont remember what else was said, I just remember punching the white, metal front door before taking my car keys and storming out of the house; but I didnt drive off. I sat in my car with tears gushing down my face, choking on sobs. What possessed me to act that way towards my mom, my best friend? When did I become this computer addict? I was so uprooted into the ways of the virtual world, that I lost touch with the actual world. My actions disgusted me and I refused to continue allowing myself to be dependent upon computers or technology. As I wiped my tears with the sleeve of my shirt, I noticed my shiny, new laptop besides me in the passengers seat. It lied there motionless, unable to soothe me, unable to give me what I truly needed. Needless to say, I did not go to my friends house. I went back to my house with puffy eyes and apologized to my mom. She gently hugged me, and as she stroked my hair, she said to me, I love you, mi corazon. But if you ever let something as trivial as your laptop get between us, Im using the chancla.