Okay, maybe calling myself a technophobe isn't entirely accurate. I usually have no problems using computers or cell phones on a daily basis (after all, I'm using a computer to write this blog post). I can honestly say that I'm not as enamored of modern technology as many other people seem to be, though. My reactions to the latest and most sophisticated smart phones, tablets, HD TVs, video game systems, and computers generally range from boredom to aversion depending on my mood. All I ask from a cell phone is that I can make phone calls, I'm happy with an obsolete computer as long as it's still functional, I'm more likely to play video games from two decades ago than anything on an X-Box, and I could care less about my TV's resolution.
I've never seen anything wrong with this; it's just who I am. Unfortunately, I sometimes get the impression that the rest of the world doesn't agree with me. I know people who NEED their computers, cell phones, and televisions to be state-of-the-art, and when they find that I don't share their enthusiasm for technology they look at me like I'm crazy. I don't like watching TV because it seems like every other commercial tells me that I need a brand-new smart phone to qualify as modern human being. I grew up playing video games, but I don't fit in with other gamers because I rarely play modern games. Sometimes I feel like the rest of the world has left me behind, and I no longer fit in with a lot of people because I don't drool over the latest smart phones on the market.
That last sentence came out a little melodramatic and self-pitying. It wasn't meant to. The truth is that I'm fine with being left behind in the technology race, mostly because I honestly don't care to be part of that race at all. I actually think we all rely a little too much on computers, so much so that I don't think people in a generation or two will know how to function without them. Technology does make our lives easier when it works, but what happens when it doesn't? I often see people - rational, intelligent people - reduced to deer in the headlights when a computer system goes down. They are unable to do their jobs, communicate with others, or even enter their homes in one case when a power outage left residents of a friend's apartment building stuck outside thanks to the failure of computerized locks. The cynical side of me is darkly amused by this, but for the most part I find it frustrating and a little scary. I'm not paranoid enough to believe that computers will bring about our ruination, but I do believe that the time will come when people will not know what to do when their computers or cell phones do not work for whatever reason.
I guess you can call me a bit of a technophobe. You can also call me weird, crazy, or anything else you think may apply to me, but this is just how I feel on the subject.
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