The Internet.

Sunday a week ago, I made a decision. No Internet for a week. I had to do it. I needed to get my thoughts off things and my life back to normal.

I have to say though, it wasn’t possible to stay away from the Internet completely, I knew that from the start. University requires Internet, so does my job. Therefore, the only two things I allowed myself to go on to were my university e-mail and my very private e-mail account, where I get my e-mails from work to. And of course, “normal” Internet use was okay too, such as university research, cinema dates, etc.

Pro Internet
Internet is a huge platform for people of any age with any interest from all over the world to communicate with each other. People who, without the Internet, would never have gotten into contact are now developing close friendships and sometimes even more. I also met some of my biggest friends on the Internet and they mean so much to me.
Also, the Internet provides us with a big source of all kinds of information on all kinds of subjects. It lets us watch videos, check out pictures, read texts and listen to music. We can buy anything and everything on it, without needing to go to a shop. We can discover so many new things on the Net, get information on the latest fashion, the latest music, and the latest trends in general, but we can also re-discover old things from our past, old memories. Everything is just a click away.



Contra Internet
Nevertheless, the Internet can get addictive. They say someone who spends longer than 3 hours on the Internet every day (in their free time) is considered addicted. Think about it yourself. How much time do you spend on the Internet every day? What would you do if you suddenly couldn’t get on the Internet anymore?
The Internet also makes you lazy. Sitting on the computer all day is not good for your health. You also don’t need to go to the shops anymore. You can buy music, movies and all kinds of goods on the Internet. What happened to the times where you went to a record store to check out the latest music, where you would stand in the shop with headphones on, listening to some CDs? Another example is book stores. What happened to the times where you sneaked through book stores and searched for a nice new book to read? Those are just two examples of how and where people meet other people; how people get into contact with each other. We are humans and we’re social beings. We go out, go shopping, go dancing, have drinks and watch movies together in the cinema. The whole movie downloading thing on the Internet makes us even more just sit at home. Internet doesn’t provide you any real face-to-face social contacts. If you stay too much at home sitting on the computer you’ll lose more and more social contacts and may become a loner. The longer you sit on the computer, the less social contacts with people around you you get. You might find people on the Internet who understand you better than anyone, but they aren’t able to hug you, to hold you when you’re down. They can comfort you with words, but it isn’t the same like a real hug.



I think the best thing is to find a healthy balance, a balance that lets you stay in contact with your Internet friends, but also lets you find new or help you keep contact to your old friends. There is nothing better than going out with friends, having fun, laughing, tickling each other, teasing each other; watching movies, going out shopping, dancing, singing, playing sports with friends, whatever you like. And it’s Christmas time now! There are lights everywhere, music all around, ……………the Christmas market!!! Be open to the world outside your room. And the more you go out, the more friends you get.

Not being on the Internet definitely made me feel more free and independent, and let me have more time for myself, but nevertheless I missed some of the people I met on the Internet. Some of you guys have become really close friends of mine. They are actually the only reason I still come on here. If it wouldn’t be for some of you, I wouldn’t use the Internet that much anymore.