Internet Crisis

Just last week, our internet and cable were cut. Just like that. My roommate and I were engrossed in our computers, doing this and that on the internet--from checking email, to IMing, facebook, and I was doing some research for one of my classes. The TV was tuned in to CNN in the background, just so we could have background noise and, on occasion, look up to see what was being reported. There's multi-tasking for you! 

A few minutes later, we both realized that our internet wasn't working. "This page cannot be displayed" flashed across our screens, and we quizically looked at each other. We still had full wireless signal, but nothing appeared on the web pages! What was worse, the TV went blank. We reset the modem and cable box, but to no avail. The internet and cable were still down. 

My roommate called Comcast, and much to both our surprise, Comcast disabled services because, apparently, my roommate failed to pay the bill for the past SIXTY-THREE days! I almost killed him. I always assumed that he took care of the bill every month (He usually covers the internet and cable, while I handle the electric). So my roommate was under the impression that Comcast was withdrawing money from his account on a monthly basis to cover the bill. But according to Comcast, he never established one of those automatic-withdrawal accounts, so by luck or something, we still had cable and internet 63 days past payment date. Well, for the next two days, we were completely without internet and cable---and for once, I realized just how much these technologies run my life. Well, cable, not so much...I can make do without watching TV, but the internet...that was the big one. So naturally the next couple days I felt bored without the internet when I was home at the apartment. I had no idea what to do with myself. Most of my school work requires online activity, especially Physics. I check and send email ALL the time...I get on facebook every once in a while to keep track of friends back home. My connection to the rest of the world seemed severed. In this sense, I can understand how electronic media really can, in a sense, instill a sense of being chained. 

I kept on hounding my roommate to take care of the bill ASAP, but it had to wait a while (2 days) because he didn't have enough money in his bank account. I offered to help him take care of it, but he has this whole pride issue where he wouldn't accept a penny. I felt like I was being tortured all the while. I REALLY needed the internet, more than anything else, to do work and contact people for meetings and what not. At one point I ran over to my neighbor's apartment to "borrow" his internet. In any case, I was ecstatic once the internet and cable came back on a couple days later. In a way, I feel like such technologies are taken for granted nowadays, because we don't necessarily realize how much we heavily depend on them. After all, you never realize how much something means to you until it's gone....thankfully, our internet came right back :)