Picture yourself being stranded in your house where the only source of entertainment relied upon the downloaded contents on your phone. For three aching days after moving into a new home, I embarked on limited Internet and cable access. It felt like being cut off from the modern world. The painful torture of not having the ability to “Kik,” scroll on “Instagram,” or get on “Youtube” almost ate me alive.

The first day was the worst and I immediately fell into withdrawal. Everything seemed like a struggle, for example, instead of tuning into Pandora while completing my homework, I had to bear through overplayed songs on my alarm clock radio.

Then I had to tolerate Primetime shows like “20/20” instead of engaging in new cable episodes of “Switched at Birth” and “Pretty Little Liars”. Minutes felt like hours and texting was not engaging since the subjects I could discuss were limited because of my inability to use the Internet. I spent most of my hours praying that nighttime would soon hit, so I could sleep away eight hours.

By the second day, I found different alternatives to fight the clock. Instead of moping around home, I persuaded my parents to take us out to the Highlands for a family night. At first, they were opposed to the idea arguing that they had work in the morning. However, as time progressed, they even began to enjoy themselves and our company. My family and I noticed that because everyone was so consumed by their electronics, we haven’t had much quality time together.

This horrible weekend of limited technology actually was turning into a positive experience. It gave me the opportunity to discover more about the world around me. I spent more time enjoying the company of my family versus ignoring them for an episode of “Teen Wolf”. Without the distraction from “Pinterest” notifications, I was successful in completing homework on my iPad within minutes instead of battling the daily temptation. I learned to value one-on-one time with people more than a screen.