My dad is a tech head. He has had a computer since the '80s. He runs both Linux and Windows 7. For a short while he was an IT guy. I remember being fourteen and my dad fixing computers for the neighbors. I grew up with this stuff. I got my first computer when I was 8 and I have had one since. I used to be ahead of the curve. I'm 22 and I have had my trusty laptop for a little over three years and I am beginning to feel like I have lost what edge I had. Three years shouldn't be old, but the fact is that three years in the tech world is ancient.

In my eyes, tech has become less about connecting and more about competition; who has the newest platform, who can "get there" first, who can convince you that 3 years is much too old to be relevant.

I avoid Twitter like the plague, I hate the idea of an e-reader, the only requirement for my cell phone was that it have a full keyboard (I enjoy proper spelling and grammar), but I fear that this has become an irresponsible way to live. I'm trying to keep myself afloat in a world that's losing touch with the people right next to them in favor of connecting with people across the world that they will never meet "IRL".

I love that information can so quickly and easily be traded between any two people, anywhere. I hate that "information" is now "Took Fluffy to the vet today cause he couldn't poop. #vetvisits." I can’t even imagine a world where I couldn’t sit in my favorite comfy chair with a cup of coffee and my favorite Gaiman, slowly rifling through the pages to find my favorite passage and remembering other great passages as I pass them.

I love the smell of old books, and while I enjoy technology I can't say that I would love the smell of a Kindle. I prefer talking to someone face to face to talking on the phone. It makes me sad that the art of letter writing is being lost. I would rather not type at "followers" in 120 characters or less.

Now, I'm not trying to say that technology is bad, or that the ingenuity of programmers, designers, and average people in meeting a need is the wrong way to go. I don't know where I would be without the interwebs and Facebook. I like that I can find a series of lecture videos discussing music and psychology and then share that with all of my friends. I like that I can share pictures with my family in Oklahoma with just a couple clicks of the mouse.

I have to admit that having a phone with a data plan would be nice, if only for a "if-you-use-this-app-you-CANNOT-get-lost" app. I would give about anything to have a flying car already, but I guess when I finally get a car I'll have to settle for one I can plug in. I just don't want these things at the expense of knowing how to talk to someone standing right in front of me.

I guess I'll just have to figure out a balance between staying in touch with my physical world and getting in touch with the tech world. Maybe one day I'll cave and get a Twitter account, and I'll probably raise my kids to be more tech savvy than me, but for now I like talking to real people in real places without a screen between us.