The Epic Conclusion

Just when you thought that one terrible blog, written by that one terribly obnoxious Asian, about that one terribly pretentious and generic topic was gone from your once peaceful life, and you could finally be at peace with life now that you knew that wannabe 15 year old Asians weren't writing snarky, narcissistic blogs...think again. That's right, my adoring legion of racially diverse (mostly Asian, I would assume. Got to look out for the brothers and sisters) fans and followers, your favorite blogger, Mr. Cameron M. Chang has returned to give you one last entry, a final sendoff to one of the most epic weeks in blogging history: The week where the phone addicted Chang took away his prized possessions, and legitimately managed to resist and stay away from his trusty companions for an ENTIRE WEEK. Pretty bad-ass if I don't say so myself. 

Well, as much as I'm sure it depresses you, I am back for the final blog of "A Teenager Without Technology" (which is a title have grown to loath more and more with each passing second). I am thankfully reunited with my phone and my other electronic devices and MAN OH MAN does it feel good. I missed them like a 2 year old misses his old, ripped, sweaty blue blanket (basically you just got a somewhat disgusting picture of my early years. Your welcome). When I used my phone for the first time I felt liberated. But the strangest part was that it felt significantly different. Nothing changed. My home screen was the same afternoon canyon shot, with light yellow lens flares peeking out in the background. That same white iPhone font hadn't changed either, same color and same text style. All the apps, contacts, feature, notifications, etc. All the same. But, when I held my phone up to my face, and gently pressed that black home button with intense anticipation, the screen seemed vaguely unfamiliar. At first, it was incredibly staggering. It almost mustered a look of slight confusion from me, but I maintained a pleasant smile, just because I was so relieved the whole ordeal was over. Of course, that 1st hour was typically underwhelming, but by the end of the day I developed more feelings of gratitude. That dark, depressing void that consumed my right pocket was now filled, and the world returned to a more balanced state for me.

Now you’re probably wondering, "Cameron, I get it. You’re happy. That's great. But what the hell did you learn from all of this"?Well, as cynical as this may seem, I didn't choose this project with the objective of trying to learn some valuable life lesson. I did what the guidelines required: Do something out of your comfort zone. Something that you will approach with feelings of uneasiness and fear. And, at first, when I contemplated doing this for my experiential blog, I brushed it off as a stupid idea, claiming "that I wouldn't be able to write anything and it would be boring for the readers". That's BS. I denied it because of the great amounts of fear I carried inside. I feared losing identity, I feared disconnect from a connected world, and I feared (possibly the most prominent theme throughout this blog) BOREDOM. Everyone fears boredom. Even the word boredom is, frankly, boring. Have you ever heard anyone using the word boring, or any variations of the word boring in a positive context? Of course not, and you never will. So, as sad as it may seem, I mustered up a lot of courage to take on this project. And, surprisingly, despite all the "intense" suffering I described vividly throughout the week, I'm quietly glad I did it. As I stared at the flashing, small screen of my iPhone 4S for the first time in over 168 hours, subtle feelings of sadness seeped into my mind. I was disappointed with myself, convinced that I felt this because I was "ungrateful" and that I had "over-hyped" myself. In fact, it was far from that. It was because a weird part of me longed for those quiet moments of nothingness, no media or distractions around. Just pure, tranquil, silence. 

Let's be real here though, I DO NOT MISS not having technology, because technology is freakin awesome. There were just some aspects of the week that I miss a bit, and I feel a bit grateful that I could take a short break from the noise and radioactivity, and relish in some moments of relaxation. Those were definitley the best moments.

The main points I took away from this project were: Boredom isn't as bad as we perceive it to be, sacrifice is hard no matter what the magnitude of the situation, and boy am I glad it’s over.

With these words, I bid farewell.

Best wishes,

Your friendly neighborhood Asian (even though in Del Mar/Carmel Valley that's like all of your next door neighbors...)

Cameron M. Chang

Day 7: The end is nigh

This morning (I've been capping a lot of these posts with my mornings haven't I? Well you know the old saying, you can learn the most about people through their morning actions. If you haven't figured it out, that's not a saying. In fact, it's quite stalker-esque. If any stalkers are reading this first and foremost, hi! Welcome to the blog, I hope your finding some interest. Secondly, get the hell out of here and hopefully I didn't just help one of your plans. What were we talking about again? Ah, hell if I know. Let's resume) started off like any old Monday morning (cue in the chirping birds and "Death Cab for Cutie" tune "On a Monday morning"). It took me 25, I kid you not, 25 minutes to physically GET out of bed, and then a couple minutes staring at the carpet as I nearly tripped on my own feet a few times. My tiger-like reflexes just hadn't kicked in yet. But they did, of course they did. I'm a freakin Asian. I came out of the womb with a black belt around my body and a ninja star in my belly button.  OK that's not true. In fact if that didn't happen, either the viewer of that situation is crazy, or that baby has a LOT of explaining to do with their parents. Anyway, I then wiped my watery red eyes and proceeded to the bathroom. I looked at myself squarely in the mirror, examining all the the little details and imperfections of my face.

Then it hit me. Like a little league baseball pitch to the nuts. Like a 7th grade slap to the face (only some of my readers will understand that), like a bucket of ice-cubes seeping down your back.

Only, this was a positive hit, one of extreme energy, excitement and relief.

Today was the final day.

Let me repeat that. Monday, January 14th 2013, is the final day of my technology fast. My daring and bold (debatable) self expose on what would happen to the mind of one teenager if his best friend (technology) was suddenly taken away from him, with no warning.

Technology. Technology is (basically) every teenager's best friend, lover, and personal obsession. It is the key to many doors, filled with excitement and surprises around any corner. And it keeps us away from our biggest, greatest fear. Boredom. Entertainment, to teenagers is like food, or drink, or crack cocaine to the highly troubled. If we do not consume it day by day, in massive quantities, we will feel as though parts of ourselves have died and withered away, and I found Boredom very quickly, and have looked him squarely in the eye during many parts of this week. But, I've learned that there's something I can to Boredom. I can tell him to go away. Whenever I want. No one has to be bored. As I've previously stated, we have the capability, as the most intelligent species on planet earth, to, well, NOT BE BORED. It's really that simple. We have the resources and brain power to be entertained by things that aren't on flashy screens. It may sound like I'm preaching to the choir, but I'm not. I love technology, and don't necessarily ENJOY having to come UP with ways to entertain myself, which has always been the job of my phone, computer, and TV. So you could say I'm a bit excited to get it back.

Today, I went back to school after the long (it felt) weekend, which is always a hard thing to do. The school day felt tedious and long, because all I could think about was staring my iPhone 4S in the eyes again. Oh how I missed my darling companion. The hours of endless staring and virtual chatting. The laughter that would escape my body whenever it would show me a funny video. The times I stared at it in awe as it displayed wonderful pictures of beach sunsets, canyons, something of that nature. Sometimes we would stay up til 2 a.m. and stare at each other blankly. I've missed that dearly, and while I'm sure this week was technically "healthier" for me, that sickly, lonely feeling will go away come tomorrow. I'm hyperventilating it just thinking about it. I just hope, I don't over hype myself. One of my worst flaws is I tend to "over hype" many different situations, and what follows is massive disappointment, but I'm nearly positive that that won't be the case.

I will say, if there's something I will miss, besides the heavy breathing, occasional panic attacks, manic sweating, consistent boredom, and overall crazed state, it's the sporadic moments of peace and quiet that entered my technology free life. I'm exposed to a lot of noise and visuals from my electronics, and since I didn't have them this week there was a lot of down time. For the most part, I did not enjoy this because I'm someone who likes to be DOING STUFF most of the time. But there were these quiet moments, these almost spiritual moments of calm that came once or twice a day, that was pure, unparalleled bliss. I appreciated the "walls", that I claim boring, around me. I appreciated the faint moaning of the air heater, and the small sounds of the house floors creaking every 10 or so minutes. I appreciated the texture of my bed as I lay on it, eyes closed, lights on though, taking in the day with deep breaths and wonderful silence. Those are moments I will indeed miss.

But enough of that pseudo poetry I'M GETTING MY PHONE BACK. It was almost as if I was living off minimum wage for a week (OK THAT'S not true). I deserve a medal for this. Hundreds of medals, and a classy blue ribbon to top it off. And all my hard work will pay off once I get my precious technology back in the arms of papa.

Was this a shorter blog, yes, but honestly besides my feelings of excitement it was a pretty (unfortunately) uneventful day, and I wish that something awesome had happened, to cap off the end of the Cameron Chang technology fast with a bang. But, alas.

Well there you have it, the final day is coming to close, and I'm left with a feeling of satisfaction and relief.

Don't worry my loyal devoted fans! Even though this is, in fact, the final day, I will be back for the final entry come tomorrow, as I summarize my week, and what I learned, blah blah blah.

Just a good 10 hours more and liberation is mine.

Day 6: What the hell am I supposed to do?

Yesterday, I talked about how Saturday was, by far in a way, my favorite day of the week. It's that nice sweet spot in the middle of the weekend, where you feel transported to somewhat of a "mini-vacation", a nice little island away from school and any superfluous teenage worries. And it's usually the day of the week where friends get together to "chill" or "kick-back" or whatever the cool kids call it these days. It's a pretty great day. Now if you ask the average teenager what their least favorite day of the week is, I can bet you that 90% of them would say MONDAY, and yes, I would agree that Monday is an undisputably shitty day, for quite obvious reasons. Firstly, no one wants to go back to school, secondly, your tired because of you procrastinated and didn't start HW til 10:00 last night and finally...IT'S MONDAY. It's pretty self explanatory. What does Mon even mean. Monk day?? In ancient times did we all dress up as monks and isolate ourselves because Mondays are so shitty?? Was the n a typo and it's actually mom day?? A day for the appreciation of Moms everywhere (which frankly should exist because seriously guys, Moms are freakin great. Like, we don't even realize). Basically, I can't find the meaning of Monday, and frankly I don't see the point in them either (but then TUESDAY would be every one's least favorite day, and then WEDNESDAY and THURSDAY, and soon the cycle never ends). However, even though I went through all that trouble to write basically a whole paragraph dedicated my strong distaste towards Mondays, it's not my least favorite day of the week. Not even close. If you haven't guessed by now, it's Sunday, and if you have, good job for you. Figurative gold star.

I'm sure if any of my 15 year old counterparts have taken a break from COD (Call of Duty) or Pretty Little Liars (seriously what is so great about that show)? or any of the BBC FanDom shows (Sherlock, Doctor Who, etc. which have somehow, by some strange miracle, have more of a FEMALE audience than males which never seeks to astound me), to read this blog, your probably thinking "Cameron you newb, how could you POSSIBLY hate Sundays more than Mondays???". Thank you for asking obnoxious teenage brat. Well I'll tell ya. There's something about it, the very essence of Sundays, that is just downright DEPRESSING. Because what comes after Sunday? Monday. And what happens on Monday?? The end of the weekend, and the start of the school week. So Sunday is incredibly sad because the entire day your dreading to go to bed because you know you have to wake up and go to SCHOOL in the morning. And even though school can, of course, be fun, I don't think teenagers idea of fun is the thought of waking up to the wonders of education and learning. So when I woke up this morning, I began to wallow in a vast pool of self pity. One, because, well, I hate Sundays, and two, I'm still technology free.

On Saturday, I discussed how I like to lay in my bed for a good 30 minutes before I start my day. Well, since I had absolutely nothing to look forward to today, I'm pretty sure I sat there for a good hour or so, staring at the wall, trying to entertain myself with interesting thoughts about movie ideas or things to do with my friends, anything to make the time go faster as I sat there in my lonesome. I lay there longer and longer until the bed became so hot that I got up as quickly as possible, so I wouldn't feel that horrible feeling when stuffiness and heat mesh to make one uncomfortable-ass sensation. I put my feet to the carpet, and slowly trudged along and went to the family room. I spent the 1st 10 minutes pacing endlessly, my mind completely devoid of thought, as I basically sleepwalked through my thoughts, which were comprised with the occasional movie image and fantasy movie trailer. I spent the next hour working feverishly, coming up with dozens of movies by the minute, whether it be remakes of films I hated, sequels to films I loved, or completely original ideas. I do this quite frequently actually, but today I tried harder than I had in a very long time to entertain myself with...myself. After a good 2 hours of this, my mom and sister woke up, I realized, with a look of deep sadness in my eyes, that it was only noon.

There has been many a time during this seemingly endless week where I feel as though I'm drifting through limbo. Through pits of nothingness that contain nothing and carry nothing and have nothing inside. It's a really strange feeling and one that I haven't grown to hate, but haven't necessarily grown to like or enjoy. My opinion on it is very mixed. I will say, I would've liked to have gone on a walk, something I haven't done in an incredibly long time, or go on a bike ride with the January wind pounding on my face, or take a jog, or ride on my Rip stick. To be precise and to the point, I wish I had taken advantage of the outdoors more. That was one thing I was legitimately looking forward too and never got to do. But there's no use in regretting, of course.

I'm not going to go into much more detail about my uneventful and, at times, painfully long Sunday (because it would be painful for you, the reader, as well), but I will close with telling you a little about a book I decided to reread. WHATTTT???? CAMERON'S READING AGAIN???? This week must really be bringing him down if he has to resort to reading. Well, if you read my Friday post, you would know that I miss reading a lot and it's something that I wish I did more. So I decided to reread one of my favorite childhood books titled, I'm not kidding you, There's a Boy in the Girls Bathroom, by the iconic Children's author Louis Sachar. Sachar wrote the wonderfully bizarre Sideways Stories from Wayside School, which, I feel, was one of the 1st novels for kids that was really geared towards adults, because, let's be honest guys, those books can get really weird, really fast. But that's why I like Sachar. He's got a strange, twisted writing-style, which I really appreciate because I'm someone who really digs twisted art, whether it be a play, a movie, or a book. And while I do love his hilarious Sideways Stories books, There's a Boy in the Girls Bathroom, is his masterpiece.

I'm sure my credibility as a valid source just dropped substantially, since I'm calling a book, who's title describes an action of great childhood embarrassment and immaturity, a masterpiece. But don't let the juvenile title fool you to think this is your generic 2nd grade classroom "read out loud" book. In fact, my only problem with There's a Boy in the Girls Bathroom, is its title. Not because it's a bad title, not at all. It's actually the perfect title, capturing the very essence of the book in seven words. I hate it because it instantly makes young readers alike think "Oh this book is for BABYS. I'M NOT A BABY." Hear me out though, After reading the first few pages, you will be instantly sucked into the whimsical, humorous, and incredibly poignant world of 5th grade delinquent Bradley Chalkers, who might just be the most wonderfully complex protagonist I've ever read in a children's book (even though it really isn't a book for children at all, as it contains emotionally mature messages that will fly over little ones heads).   The book centers around the seemingly awful Chalkers and his beautiful relationship with the school counselor, Carla Davis. The 1st time I read it, I think in the 4th grade, I was gripped from beginning to end, and it was entertaining and pleasing to read about this strange anti-hero's transformation from bully to "good-guy". After reading it last night, I almost cried. This book is heavily underrated, and should be required middle school, or even high school reading, for all adolescents across the globe. Sachar takes the subject of bullying, and approaches in a way that is unparalleled genius, and writes with great honesty and integrity. There's a Boy in the Girls Bathroom is now one of my Top 5 favorite books of all time, as it accomplishes everything a book should and then some. It has a complex and interesting protagonist, characters you actually care about, a distinct writing style, humor and heart, and it (unlike MANY children's books, too many in fact) it never talks down to them or "dumbs it down". In fact, quite the contrary. This is the easily the most mature and deeply felt children's novel I've ever read, and it single handedly restored my faith in literature. Ya, it's that good.

I apologize for that mini book report, I just REALLY want everyone to read the book, because it's a god damn masterpiece. Rereading that book has definitely been the highlight of my technology fast so far, and something I'm really glad I was able to do.

Tomorrow is it. The final day of the Cameron Chang Technology Fast. It's gonna be an intensley exciting blog with surprises, musical guests, celebrity interviews, and much, much more. It's the can't miss event of the whole freakin season. OK, there are no surprises. Or musical guests. Or celebrities. Or much, much more. I'm sorry. Just...it'll be a good blog. Be there or be square.

Day 5: An extremely depressing morning

Waking up on Saturday Mornings in the late hours of the morning is a sensation of pure bliss and wondrous tranquility. You open your eyes to the glorious sight of beams of light seeping through the window shades, and you can hear the faint but beautiful sounds of blue and green birds chirping in the distance, as they cuddle in their nests, which are located in the foliage that surrounds your house, who embody the prescience of strong, watchful gatekeepers. You bring your fists to your eyes and rub them gently for comfort, and stretch your arms "to the sky" in order to perk yourself up a bit. Then you (I don't know everybody, but I tend to do this all the time) usually just sit there in the comfort of your bed and close your eyes, knowing your not going to fall back asleep, but greedily relishing in the morning energy and preparing yourself for the day ahead. After this, you slowly step out of bed, trudging and limping a bit as you emerge from your cocoon, slowly adjusting to the environment around you: The floor, the temperature, the walls, etc. Then you might blink a couple times to perk up your energy and do some more adjusting.

After this beautiful morning ritual has been nonchalantly performed what happens now? What activity/and or action will be practiced to start off your Saturday morning the right way? What on earth could serve as positive kick-off to this hopefully incredible day??

Don't act like you don't know what it is guys. You know perfectly well what it is.

Saturday is my favorite day of the week for a number of reasons, and I'm sure many of my adolescent counterparts would be in full agreement with that statement. I think out of all the days of the week,  the only day that I can really associate with an adjective is Saturday. That adjective is relaxation. Ahhh relaxation. What a lovely word, isn't that a lovely word? Every time I hear it or say or see it in a newspaper, or magazine, or ad or something of that nature, a plethora of good vibes never ceases to invade my thoughts. That's one of my very favorite words, cause it's makes me feel SO FREAKIN GOOD. And yes, the entire day of Saturday for the majority of human beings is not filled to the brim with ENDLESS relaxation. Not only would that be highly unrealistic because human nature decrees us to be "abnormally" (even though its really quite ordinary) stressed out 70-80% of the time, but if ALL of Saturday was relaxing, we wouldn't appreciate it as much and many would classify it as "boring" (which is a word I've gotten extremely familiar with this week). And also, people have homework and commitments and stuff like that, of course. But every Saturday, without fail, before I start my weekend homework (isn't weekend homework the worst. The whole frickin point of the weekend is that it's a break from school, not an at home continuation. And seriously, teachers of the world, I hope some of you are listening to this, because I want you to hear me loud and clear. HIGH SCHOOLERS ARE BUSY. REALLY BUSY. And when does a great majority of our busyness take place? THE. WEEK. ENDDDD. Teachers, you giving us great amounts of homework during the weekend not only places in a crazy time crunch, but it also adds on to the mental paranoia and stress that we high schoolers posses. So please, good, civil teachers, if your gonna assign any homework during the weekend, be a reasonable person and make it quick and minimal. That is all), I pull my phone out of the charger and use it for a good 1, 2 hours. This sounds obsessive, yes, (well that's because it is), but it serves as a "waker upper" for me. Plus it sets up the relaxing vibe for the day. No, it's probably not that great for my health that one of the 1st things I see every Saturday morning is a small, flashing screen, sending endless radiation in my not fully evolved brain, but, it puts me in a positive mood and that's good enough for me.

And even though this is DAY 5 of the Cameron Chang Technology Fast (copyright pending), I still woke up this morning, performed my ritual, and walked towards the charger to start off the day right.

After 3 seconds of walking I stopped in my tracks and sulked back into my room.

What do I now?? What could possibly fill this terrible void???

Well, in all honesty, nothing can or has filled that void. It's simply impossible. I am too accustomed to my current state of privileged living that the place in my heart (cheesy, I know) I have for my electronics, especially my phone is irreplaceable.

After 2 hours of boring nothingness (which I'll touch on later in the blog) I decided that it was time to do some homework. More specifically, it was time to do some AP World History. Now, don't get me wrong, I enjoy history class, I do. I especially enjoy world-history class, because I find learning about the mistakes and triumphs of the past to be utterly fascinating and highly interesting. But AP World is one slog of a class, holy crap. 60 pages of reading a week? 2 quizzes a week? 1 5 paragraph essay a week? A 50 question test that counts for 70% of your grade every 2-3 weeks?? It doesn't sound too hard, but it is. When I read the chapters at home, it's very comforting to have my phone in my right pocket, to take a short (I use that term loosely) break or entertain myself during the boring sections of the read. Obviously, I didn't have that today and as a result, my reading ended early and I resumed the excitement of wall staring because, frankly, that seemed a bit more interesting then what I was reading.

Luckily, I knew this wouldn't be the worst Saturday of all time, because I was going to my school's annual formal at Sea World (kind of. It was in Sea World but everything was closed and we didn't get to ride any of the rides or go to the exhibits or anything. It's like having dinner at Downtown Disney, which, from personal experience, is the WORST THING EVER. Your eating dinner RIGHT NEXT to the park gates and you can hear the screams of excitement coming from the patrons inside. That was a truly sad moment in my life). It was pretty tricky knowing what was happening though with the group of friends I was going with since I'm Phone-Free. I had to have my mom and sister do all the communicating, which I'm sure they weren't too thrilled about either. Everything turned out fine though, and I went to formal and had a swell time (phone less of course)

Formal is interesting, because it's the one high-school dance that EVERYBODY goes to, since Prom is for Juniors and Seniors and Homecoming is basically "The Freshman Dance". It's weird because I don't really consider myself the dance/clubbing/party type. I mean if you took one look at my innocent Asian face you would see why. However, there's something about school dances, particularly Formal, that just does something to me. It injects this strange, irresistible energy into my soul (pretencion for the win) and I just get really excited, really fast. I'm sure if I watched a tape of myself at formal I would wanna punch myself in the face. I'm that one guy who does stupid dance moves on purpose, and I kinda despise that person so I don't really know why I do it. It might have also been because it's a REALLY WEIRD FEELING not to have your phone at a dance. It's like being in this strange, loud, sweaty foreign dimension, knowing that earth is a million miles away. It was weird.

Well, Day 5 is finished and we're getting closer and closer to the much anticipated end (at least for me anyway). Stay tuned for Sunday's edition, which is sure to be the most boring edition of the blog yet. My legion of fans, rejoice.

Day 4: Spanish hates me

There comes a point in every brave man's journey, an inevitable and much anticipated pit stop just after crossing the halfway mark, where one feels that the worst is over. Where he knows he has gotten over the hump successfully, and that the absolute worst and most agonizing moments of the perilous trek are far behind him. This is a moment of genuine celebration. The fact that he has gotten this far is extremely impressive and the rest of the journey is one filled with much more happiness and relaxation than the previously.

Ya, THAT HAS HAPPENED FOR ME. In fact, IT. JUST. KEEPS. GETTING. WORSE.

We are on the 4th day, THE 4TH DAY of my technology fast and it is definitely the longest, most painful, most depressing, most boring, most monotonous, most melancholy, and most frustrating week in recent memory. Was there a single positive adjective in that overly long sentence? I don't know about you guys, but I certainly didn't see one. I'm not gonna lie and say that this is "a humbling and rewarding experience, that makes me realize the gaping flaws in our technologically based society, and makes me pine for the good 'ol days without cell-phones, television or Internet. The days when we would go outdoors and spend time in the park or at the beach, when families were closer, the environment better, and the U.S. more peaceful. I realize just how terrible this society is and how our fall from grace is one of great, great melancholy". I'm not gonna say that because it's a heaping pile of BS. I did not go into this project because I wanted to realize "how great" not having technology is and how we have forgotten that as a society. No, Technology is freakin awesome and I knew that going in and BOY do I know that right now. I did this because I knew I would suffer and it would legitimately affect me and how I go about with my everyday life. And, ya it has. The only positive thing I can get out of this is that I've been getting more sleep, since there is no iPhone 4S to distract me in the late hours of the night.

But, I feel so "out of it", so to speak. I feel like I'm a strange alien creature, walking among immortal, all knowing beings. Since these beings have phones, and computers and television and iPads and what not, they are heavily "in the know" like I used to be. I wake up every morning thinking "there's probably some really awesome, or really important news flowing around the Internet right now. Do I know what it is? Of course not! Will I ever find out? Probably not!" Since there is so much news and (usually) most news stays in the public eye for short amounts of time, there will be a plethora of vital information that I will go my whole life without knowing. What if some of that news could've served me well in the near future? What if me reading a certain article or watching a certain video would've inspired me to do something important, or maybe change my views on certain political or social issues? Yes, I will admit I'm being a bit hyperbolic but still, knowing that your basically detached from the world from a week feels, well, lonely. And no one wants to feel lonely.

Greetings people who DO have technology. I hope you all had just as good of a Friday as I did because mine SUCKED BALLS. If you are at all worldly you know that Friday is the start of the weekend. Ahh, the weekend, a time that all adolescents and teenagers alike wait the entire week for. A time for relaxation, minimal homework, and most importantly to watch TV, play on phones, and use the computer. So you could say I wasn't exactly excited for this weekend. Not in the slightest.

The school days, again are certainly not to bad since phones are only use periodically at school as supposed to home which is like 70% of the time. But something happened today where I knew, for a fact, that the universe was against me. That it (the universe) believed that I, quite simply, haven't suffered enough. That moment happened today around 10:30 A.M. in my Spanish 4 class. We had just finished taking a quiz about an article involving FACEBOOK (this has just been a really crappy week) and, like after Tuesday's math test (Day 1), I sat there awkwardly tapping my fingers, as I made quick glances at my fellow classmates, who stared blankly into their smart phones. The story you are about to hear is absolutely, 100% true. After the test, our teacher, Profe Windburne, pulls up a PowerPoint, that says, in black, bold, italicized letters "TECHNOLOGY" but in Spanish of course. You've gotta to be kidding. Then she starts asking us questions  like "How often do you use your cellphone", and "Are you addicted to your cellphone"? And I'm thinking "Almost every hour of every day" and "Very", as answers to those two questions. She then, and I swear I am not making this up, asks us "How would you feel if you couldn't use your phone for a week".

I knew, right then and there, the universe hated me. That the panel of gods who hate teenagers addicted to their cellphones were taking advantage of me, and were using this as an opportunity for torture. Well guess what guys?? You won! I hate this! And I freakin hate Spanish class! (I already hated Spanish but this solidifies that fact even more).

Something I also did today was...read. What?! What???!!!! WHATTTTT???!!! Reading???!! What is this newfangled READING you speak of??!! Basically it's been a long time since I've read. Too long. And I know that it's been a long time since many of my friends have read as well. I will say, if there's any negative impact  that technology has had on society, it's limiting the amount of books read by children each year. Reading is important, and can also be incredibly powerful, or fun, or sad, or funny, and many times it can be all of them at once. If there's anything I will try to do more often after the conclusion of this project, it's most definitely reading.

Well by Jove, I believe we've reached the end of Day 4. Stay tuned as I chronicle what is to sure be the most boring and uneventful weekend of all time.

Day 3: Phones have become neccessities

The feeling I've adopted each day, as I walk around the schoolyard, my house, or wherever I am is one of pure, uncomfortable nakedness. I feel naked, standing in front of millions of people without any clothes on. Vulnerable. Utterly and completely weak. Yes, I am indeed over dramatizing but (sadly) the feelings that I have just described in rather vivid detail is scarily close to the thoughts that have been parading through my mind for these past three days. The suffering and longing increases, like a bad breakup, and you feel like a very important, vital part of yourself has gotten up and just walked away. With no warning, packed it's things, flipped you off, and left with reckless abandon. And my right pocket, (he) is just as depressed and melancholy (if not more), than I am. I assumed that he (yes my right pocket is a guy. The left is a girl. No gender discrimination here), looked forward to the company of an iPhone 4S by his side everyday, a best friend to spend his mornings, afternoons and evenings with. Now, that best friend is gone and I can almost feel the emptiness inside his pocket heart, pining for his loving, faithful companion. Now he has to settle for a new friend. CHAP STICK. Chap stick is simply not as satisfying as his old friend. He's a small, often painfully annoying object, constantly rolling around the pocket from side to side, very unsure of what spot he wants to take. iPhone 4S was more certain and always stayed still. Chap stick is just a pain in the ass.

I noticed that story became progressively weirder, (somewhat) creepy, and juvenile as it dragged and trudged along. Like the chap stick is unsure of where to stay in the pocket, I am often unsure of what the f**k I am writing. Hopefully, you the viewer found a bit of strange appeal in the previous paragraph...it was probably a lot more fun to write than read

What I was unsuccessfully trying to accomplish in my 1st paragraph was state the obvious facts. This sucks. A lot. Not more than I initially anticipated, since I was expecting this week to put me through the shitter and force the inevitable evolution from boy to man (which I don't think is going to happen because...c'mon. Cameron Chang and maturity don't belong in any sentence together no matter what the context), but I'm technically "suffering" and I use the word technically because from San Diego adolescent point of view, I'm going through the fiery, deadly pit of hell, hanging with Mr. Devil himself. But, you know, from an ENTIRE WORLD standpoint, I don't have a single problem. I'm still incredibly privileged and really don't realize just how lucky I have it. OK, I know this has nothing to do with the topic at hand but let's just take a moment to realize how ungrateful teenagers in San Diego (at the least the area that I live) and other wealthy locations on earth are. I do firmly believe that ALL people have problems, but the ones that me and many of my friends are dealing with are SO FREAKIN STUPID. Come on guys. Get over yourselves. Look at your life! Look how good you've got it! I know that had nothing to with the blog, but, man, I just had to get that off my chest. Feels good. Not good enough to get over my current problems, but you could say I'm at a  more peaceful state at the moment. (This might be the most hypocritical blog I've ever seen)

To all of you (haha, all. Ya right), I say hello and good day. If you are still reading this blog you must really not get out much. But I'm not complaining. I don't know anyone my age who has done this before, so I sincerely hope that people read this so they can see how an average adolescent would cope with complicated feelings in this "dire" situation. So far, not so great. Will power (the main topic discussed on Day 2) is still heavily in my favor, because as I type away on my laptop, using the INTERNET, I only have the slightest and most utterly minuscule impulse to use it for entertainment purposes. Very small. Little. OK medium. Above average. OK, I'm dying here. I'M DYING HERE (if you got that movie reference, good job) Speaking of movies that's ANOTHER thing that is out of my disposal this week. Now if you know me, you know I'm kinda sorta REALLY obsessed with motion pictures. So to deprive the poor, innocent Asian child Cameron Chang of the art of film making for a week is liking rudely stealing candy from a very hungry baby. OK, if you did that you would be the biggest asshole ever and a mean spirited person who needs to see a therapist. That is messed up. Go rethink of your life for a sec (I'm talking about the baby scenario, of course. God, I'm not THAT Narcissistic).

Thankfully, I'm the only in this house that doesn't have a TV, which initially pissed me off (and at times still does like REALLY GUYS. EVERYONE GETS ONE BUT ME, REAL COOL). However, at this moment in time, I couldn't be happier about that fact. You know how painful it would be to attempt to do homework and fall asleep right in a front of a sizeable flat screen television? I would go through perilous struggles to fall asleep, as the evil black screen in front of me whispers in a terrifying yet seductive voice, "Cameron. You know you wanna waaaattttcchhh iiiiiiiittt. Waaaaattccchhh iiitttt Cameron. WAAAATTTTTTCCCHHHH ITTTTTT. Not getting night terrors is the preferred nighttime state for myself, so I'm grateful we dodged that bullet.

Throughout this week, as you are well aware, I've really, really missed my phone. I mean phones are so great. Aren't phones great? They're great. And while it's been sad for me to not have it by my side in that right pocket, I never felt like I had a lost a valuable, vitally important necessity. Until today. Today I realized, people like me NEED phones. And I'm not saying this in the format of a pretentious, rebellious elementary school persuasive essay. No. We, I, need it. I'm a busy person living with an active, busy family. And sometimes we are stuck in busy situations. Like today for example. My mom (basically) had to be in three places at once and I was completely unaware how she was going to do that, and was unaware until she picked me up from rehearsal at my school at 5:15. It would've been really, REALLY convenient to have had a phone with me so that I could have been in the know with what was going on. Instead I had NO FREAKIN IDEA, and it concerned me throughout the day how, exactly, my mom was gonna pull it off. If I had had a phone, I would've been aware of how the situation was resolving itself, putting my fears at ease. So there you go uptight parents. I think teenagers do need phones. You heard it hear first.

There's also a great amount of paranoia that comes with not consistently knowing the time of day. Yes, classrooms have clocks, I'm well aware. But (I'm not making this up. I'm sure an unbiased panel of fellow adolescents would gladly back me up on this), there's something about getting the time of day from your phone that is much more reassuring. If it sounds a little crazy, well, that's cause it is. I can't stress enough the insane amount of dependency teenagers have for their cellular devices. That wasn't the 1st time I've mentioned it in this blog and it won't be the last.

The school day today was alright. Not BRUTALLY painful. I have noticed, however, that days are getting longer and longer, as if time is moving at a snail's pace with each passing second. Sounds agonizing? Well it kind of is. Also it kills (and I'm using that in the negative context. We teenagers tend to use kill in an exciting or positive context, i.e. "I killed the audition man", or "that song kills"! The one just used, however, was in a derogatory context. I'm sure this was skimmed over by most because, I mean, who really wants to take the time and effort to read what's in the frickin parentheses am I right? Anyway, I though clarification on context would be sufficient) not to be able to look up translations in Spanish class on my phone. Instead I have to use the...wait for it...English Spanish Dictionary. Dictionaries simply weren't designed for people like myself, because I am lazy. I don't want to have to freakin find foreign stuff I'm not familiar with, in a big-ass book with big-ass words and figure out which definition, of the word that I had to squint to find, is the right one out of like 15 billion definitions?

At night though, the desire grew to an alarming, all time high. I was breathing heavily. My stomach hurt, and I pitied my "tragic" loss. What I need to do, in order to get through what is turning into one of the slowest weeks of my life, is this: Put my life into perspective and just suck it up. If I can do that, then I'm golden.

Day 3 has finished, and so we move on to Day 4 which is Friday; the start of the weekend. If it seemed like I was bored during the school week OH MAN. You ain't seen nothing yet.

Day 2: It's a good thing will power exists

Will power is a very valuable skill. It gives you the ability to resist the most powerful of desires and temptations. Pretty bad-ass huh? Do you guys remember Frog and Toad? The iconic set of children's books centered around best friends frog and toad who live in the forest and have kick-ass adventures together? God I miss childhood. Anyway, I learned about will power from the best: Frog and Toad. In arguably the most famous Frog and Toad story of all time, Toad goes to Frog's house with some cookies in hand. If I'm not mistaken (it's been a while since I was seven years old, cut me some slack) Toad has the intention of leaving the cookies out for the birds, but he lets Frog try just one. Of course, in classic children's story fashion, they are "the best cookies frog had EVER tasted". He REALLY wants to eat another one, hell he wants to eat all of them at once, these are some mighty fine cookies let me tell you. But, since he's a character in a children's story, he's scared that if he eats another cookie, he'll feel intense amounts of guilt and go through an going cycle of intense moral dilemmas for the rest of his mere existence (OK...I don't know about "the rest of his mere existence" part. Basically he'll feel like a jackass if he eats the cookie). However, if these cookies are so flipping fantastic, how on earth can Frog and Toad possibly resist eating them? How? HOW??

That's right guys. Two words. Three syllables. WILL POWER.

Then there desires become too powerful to resist and they eat all the cookies...probably wasn't the best example in representing will power but hey, it gave me an excuse to reminisce and feel nostalgic. Man I wish I was five again.

But unlike my amphibian role models I will NOT succumb to temptation and desire. Technology will not get the best of me, no sirree bob. I will stand my ground and I will not waver. Not for a damn second. And with the unparalleled force of will power by my side I'm freakin invincible. Will power really needs to be in my favor RIGHT NOW because I'm currently typing away on a computer and at any second I could open another tab and break my pact and (sadly) return all the way back to square one. That's scary. And that feeling a teenager gets when they know they aren't permitted to use any technology? That paranoia? That uneasiness? Ya, that hasn't gone away. I doubt it ever will. In fact it might be getting worse (impending sign of mental health problems #2). However not as worse as what has already come, and a bit sooner than I had hoped or anticipated. BOREDOM. Ah Boredom. It's been a while. How's the fam? The Wife? The Kids? Oh your grandpa died? Man I'm sorry to here that boredom. I know your in a dark place right now, but it will get better. It always does.

That served absolutely no purpose to this blog whatsoever. In fact, I'm pretty sure the MAJORITY of this blog serves no purpose to the blog. Anyway, I think its been a while since I was TRULY bored. Like mind-numbingly bored. Like pound your brains out bored. Until today. I find that extremely alarming because I shouldn't be bored. Ever. I'm a human being living on planet earth. I have the mental capacity and intelligence to stay away from boredom whenever I please. Alright, let's land on a serious note for a sec. As I've previously stated I really shouldn't be bored because while it seems like there's "nothing to do" since the basis of how I spend my free time has been taken away from me, there really is a lot that I can do. But (and I'm definitely not the first to say this) because of the overload of technology in our society, we have become (as a society) uninterested unless there is a screen in front of our faces. Of course, I'm not indicting all human beings on planet earth, but I've noticed that a vast majority (myself included) has involved into this perpetually sad state.

 Well (I think) there are a number of things I can do besides play on my phone or watch TV (the ceiling/floor staring became a tad unbearable after 10 seconds). For one, I can day dream which is something I actually enjoy doing frequently. I'm actually being 100% serious here when I say I enjoy day dreaming for pleasure. There's something about using your imagination to create visionary scenarios and situations in your mind (excuse my pretentiousness) that really is kind of exhilarating. It's called La La land in my family, but honestly I really hate that because I just get this image of an idiotic, stupid toddler  drooling and sucking a lollipop as he looks off into space with that terrible look of artificial naivety in his eyes. I'm sorry, I hate kids. Especially toddlers. And I know what you're gonna say reader, you're gonna say "Cameron man you're a hypocrite, you were a toddler once! Hell you're (technically. I'd like to think I'm slightly more mature than the average kid but I know for a fact that's not true) still a kid! You couldn't possibly have hated yourself in early childhood". I can answer that inquiry in full confidence in that I was probably, the biggest little shit when I was little. And yes I'm partially joking. Maybe

Anyway, La La Land (copyright) used to be an aspect of my every day life that I would look forward to with intense anticipation. I couldn't wait to go in my room, shut the door and think about all the adventures I was having with my favorite movie, book , and TV characters. Sometimes, I would create my own worlds and own characters, which was the most exciting. But, (of course) as apple products, among others, consumed the majority of my free time, my visits to La La Land became less frequent and shorter as well. Whenever I do visit (I apology for getting pretty tongue and cheek. Nostalgia does that to me sometimes), my thoughts are as equally imaginative as they were before, and it's a very calming thing when you know that your imagination has not died.

My day? Of course I'll tell you guy(s) about it, stop asking. I think the amount of times reached into my right pant pocket has doubled or even tripled. I'm sure the people sitting around me in Spanish class assume that I have recently adopted a serious medical issue, because every time I reach my hand in and realize the absence of my "most prized possession" its followed with a look that combines anger and melancholy in a strange and unsettling way. I've told quite a few of my friends now about this project, and the reactions have been pretty diverse. Some of them have said what I would classify as the appropriate response with "Oh my god. Are you dying?" which I would follow up with a reluctant "Slowly, yes." Some didn't think much of it. The one reaction that really got on my nerves though, that really ticks me off is, "Ya that's not hard at all". I then asked those people, "Really, would you willingly do that?", which is followed by the iconic adolescent groan "Uhhhhhh, haha, Ahh uhhhh". Similar to the sounds of primitive cave men I might say. (If you haven't noticed I'm not a huge fan of teenagers either. Yes I'm a bit of pessimist. I would like to call myself a realist but we all know that's what pessimists call themselves to make themselves feel better).

It's the weirdest feeling though. Phones serve as wonderful security blankets and can always work in your favor. Lull in an awkward station? Get the phone out. Bored after a test? Get the phone out. Trying to make an awkward conversation not so awkward? Look at social media outlets or play games TOGETHER on your smart phone. You know what I have to do? Socialize. With my personality, which is not an easy thing. I'm not a very shy person, and a pretty big talker but I'm a slightly awkward and strange person and as such I say awkward and strange things from time to time. If things do get awkward (which they do more than I'd like to admit) I can't take out my iPhone now because, duh, and I can't leave because I mean, come on, that's just rude, so I'm stuck staring at the person with this weird-ass nervous smile like a freakin creeper. Expect me to loose a substantial amount of once good friends by the end of this process.

Home is still the hardest. As a person (and I'm pretty sure this applies to most). I think. All the time. About a number of things. And thinking leads to questions. And what can answer questions? My phone and/or laptop (which yes, I'm using for this blog and homework worksheets but that is it I promise). I REALLY did not realize how much I used these devices to answer my questions until now. I probably averaged 10 questions that I would then answer on my smart phone an hour. So, ya you could say I have a lot of questions that won't be answered because I don't have the brain capacity nor the attention span to remember them all.

Well there's today's blog for you. Stay tuned for more cynicism, sarcasm, occasional narcicism and consistent asianness.