Cellphone Dependency

I think there is an overall expectation that when you join the Peace Corps you will be completely disconnected. That you will be tossed into a world without cell phone service, wi-fi and/or other basic technologies. That you will become independent from this technologies and learn to live without them.

This might be true for some Peace Corps posts around the world. But part of me doubts that one would be completely, and I mean completely, cut off. The reality is that its 2019 and handheld technology like cell phones is insidious. Its everywhere. And with cell phones comes wi-fi, social media etc.

This is what I am experiencing in Peru. Peru has a developed cell phone market with various mobile carriers. Most places in Peru will have some sort of service, except for the very remote places. I get cell service in my new home. When I lived with my host family, I did not have service. I also have a mobile wi-fi hotspot modem. As long as I have service, I can connect to the internet.

What I have come to see is that my PC service has had the opposite effect on technology usage as one might have originally thought. I feel more dependent on my cellphone than I did in the States. Why? I think it has become a very real and very cherished link to my family and friends back home. With it I am able to stay active on messaging and social media apps. I am able to stay in touch with people very far away.

This is different from when I lived in the States because I was so much closer. I had my people and friends and family closer by. Staying in touch wasn’t as much of a craving. Now I find myself messaging a lot throughout the day and checking my blog and instagram almost incessantly. Before I don’t think I had this problem. I also think I had less to share. There is a prideful component to being in the PC. I like being able to write and post about my experiences for others to read and see.

Overall I am a bit concerned about my cellphone dependency. Especially my consumption of social media such as instagram. I have noticed a change in just how much time I spend connected to my device.