It started in 1995 when my third grade class was taught to access windows via DOS by typing WIN. There were simple computer games and eventually Yahoo Pool. About five years ago I discovered AIM, then myspace. After Myspace there was digg, then mixx, twitter, livejournal, boudica, pownce, plurk, skype, ustream, mixxingbowl, blogging and co-blogging.

I think I was probably fooling myself when, a few months ago, I took the internet addiction test and scored normally. The truth is that there’s nothing normal about my internet usage. No one I talk to in the real world ever knows what I’m talking about when I mention aspects of my online life. Most people have heard of Myspace. But Mixx? Twitter? FAIL? OMGWTFBBQ? My lucky FAIL shirt takes at least thirty minutes to explain to a non-internet user.

What I’m trying to get at here is that I need out. This wave has taken me as far as I can go right now. I need to rid myself of the bad habits I’ve picked up since I’ve been assimilated into the interweb-borg. I’ve been having trouble turning off my mind at night when it’s time to go to sleep, trouble concentrating on school work, trouble doing all sorts of things I’ve never had trouble with before.

It’s not been a complete waste of time. There is something very fun about being on the cutting edge of a world and watching it evolve all around you. There’s something unique about being in the middle of something important right as it’s happening, even if it is just internet importance. I’ve met some awesome people I never would have met otherwise, learned some HTML, was part of a million inside jokes, and that has made everything worth it. Those of you who have my cell number can call me, and those who don’t– well, I should be back in a little while. I’ve got some books to read and some “outside” to explore; I’ll be back after my plurk karma has dropped to zero and I’ve got some real karma under my belt.