Just One Week • • •

An "addict" goes without her cell and Facebook — oh, no!

Laura Katsnelson misses using her cellphone and laptop.

Laura Katsnelson
Teen2Teen Staff Writer

F

or those of you who have one,
your Facebook is probably your
addiction. Once you log on, it's
impossible to log off.
And, of course, your phone is your baby.
You take it everywhere you go, and it holds
a special place in your heart.
In the year 2009, teenagers feel the need
to be connected — all the time, at every
moment. What would happen if Facebook
suddenly crashed and all our phones died?
Could we survive the catastrophe? Could we
carry on for just one week? I sure hope so.
Because I, Laura Elyse Katsnelson, am
going to stay off my Palm Centro and
Facebook account for one week.
Here are my limitations:
1.No using my cell phone for calling,
texting or any applications.
2.The only exception is calling my par-
ents and only for something important.
3.Signing into Facebook is not allowed,
which means I cannot write on anyone's
walls, check my messages or send one
harmless Bumper Sticker.
4.E-mail is allowed (come on, guys, I
need SOME way to communicate online!),
but I've disabled those e-malls Facebook
sends to make sure I don't cheat.
And that's all. Here's how my week went:
Monday, Feb. 23: I've always consid-
ered myself to have a good amount of

self-control, which is one reason I decided
to accept this challenge. So far so good,
I have barely had time to miss anything.
The hardest moment was at ATID Hebrew
school; being in a room full of texting
teens would make any person reach for
her phone. But I resisted and paid atten-
tion to the class instead. As for Facebook,
I'm not feeling any withdrawal symptoms
yet. All in all, an easy day. 0
Tuesday, Feb. 24: Well, I ended up going
to bed late last night, so when I got home
this afternoon I went straight to my room.
After a three-hour nap and dinner, I decid-
ed to log on the computer and start an AP
Government assignment. Usually, I'll keep
Facebook open in another window for easy
access. Not thinking, I almost did the same
today. I went so far as to start typing my
password on the log-in page before I real-
ized what I was doing! I guess that once I
open Internet Explorer, typing the URL for
Facebook is an automatic reflex. Oh, man,
this week may be harder than I thought ...
Wednesday, Feb. 25: Today I had to
do five subjects of homework, which left
me no time to think about my phone/
Facebook-less self. The only thing I had
to do after school was to attend an NHS
meeting and organize a student council
picture for my yearbook class. Seems
simple, but after today I'll never take my
phone for granted again. Both events were
accidentally planned for the same time; I
had to be in two places at once. This would
never have happened if I had been able to

use my phone to call people and clarify
things. Everything worked out eventually,
but only because I used someone else's cell
phone. I have no idea how people survived
their whole lives without cell phones 20
years ago — it seems impossible!
Thursday, Feb. 26: Let me say this right
from the start: I've slipped. I'm sorry; I
logged into Facebook and checked a thread
I have going with some friends. 0 I know,
I know, why couldn't I just wait until the
end of the week? Well, I was feeling a bit out
of the loop and I couldn't help myself. You
know, this week would be much easier if
everyone else went without Facebook and
their phones, too, then I wouldn't feel like I
was missing out on anything.
And I know this doesn't make up for it,
but I did stop myself from checking myl6
new notifications. For some reason, click-
ing on the red box would have seemed too
permanent. And I'd like to think that I still
have some self-control left!
Friday, Feb. 27: I was a lot better today,
maybe because I got my communication
fix by e-mailing a few friends. And even
though I still feel unconnected, I'm OK
with it. The only things that have bugged
me today are the unread messages and
missed calls that have accumulated on my
cell. Every time I hear my phone vibrating
it takes all my self-control to stop myself
from checking who it was. And even
though I have a clean record (aside from
yesterday) I still cannot wait until I can
call and text again! Just two more days.
Saturday, Feb. 28: I'm very surprised
— today was a piece of cake! I expected
these last few days to be the hardest, but I
haven't felt any Facebook-cravings at all.
I suppose I did enough to keep me busy:
I did ACT practice, finished my biology
homework, took a walk outside, went to
the movies and babysat. Because I wasn't
on the computer much, I was able to get a
lot done in one day! It's great, although it
probably won't last. 0
Saturday, March 1: The end of the
week is so close; I can almost see the fin-
ish line. Finally, I can have my normal life
back! Although I'm really happy about this,
I realized something today: Without my
cell phone or Facebook in my life, I don't
procrastinate as much, can get everything
done faster and actually get more sleep. All
the time I typically spend on Facebook can

Mock Wedding Set

The B'nai B'rith Youth Organization
(BBYO) will hold a mock wedding of
two of its leaders at 8 p.m. Saturday,
March 14, at the Jewish Community
Center in West Bloomfield.
Rabbi Daniel Schwartz of Temple
Shir Shalom in West Bloomfield will
officiate at the simulated wedding
of Stephanie Horwitz, BBG regional
president, and Jeremy Sherman,
AZA regional president.
After the traditional Jewish wed-
ding ceremony, a reception and
dance will be held at the JCC.
"Our goal is give Jewish teenag-
ers an opportunity to learn about
the beautiful and ancient Jewish
wedding traditions in an exciting
and fun setting among their peers,"
explained Eric Adelman, BBYO
regional director.
All Jewish high school students eik
are eligible to attend this event,
which is free. Advance responses
should be sent to Jared Rothberger,
BBYO program associate, at jroth-
berger®bbyo.org or by phone at
(248) 432-5685.

be spent doing other things. And though
it took me a while to get used to the idea,
it's not so bad being unconnected from my
friends. I now feel a lot more in tune with
myself, which is something I am going to
miss after this week.
I'm not saying that we should drop
Facebook and phones from our lives com-
pletely, but it wouldn't hurt to cut back a
little. Or everyone could attempt a commu-
nication-free week. People may not believe
they can do it, but it's possible — I swear. Et

The very brave Laura Katsnelson, 16, is a

junior at Walled Lake Western High School.

Watch for teen 2 teen in next week's Jewish News

March 12 s 2009

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