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Nothing. I'm 34 years old and grew up in the rural Southeastern U.S. We had a meager public library that was a 20-minute drive from my home. I spent as much tim
by FroshKiller 11y ago
Nothing. I'm 34 years old and grew up in the rural Southeastern U.S. We had a meager public library that was a 20-minute drive from my home. I spent as much time as I could get away with in my schools' libraries.
My entire childhood, I had the sense of a world much bigger than the one I lived in that was just beyond my reach. My mother could give me glimpses when we went on vacation, but I was living years out of touch.
When we got Internet access, I got connected in a life-changing way to that world. It transformed how I learn, how I discover, what I remember, how I connect with people, everything, and all of it for the better. I think I'd rather die than go back.
- meat_fist 11y agoMy hometown didn't have sidewalks. My house was a long and extremely unsafe walk away from anything of value, and my mother worked insane hours. When she finally caved and got dial up, I remember everything changed very aggressively. There was no longer a physical barrier between me and new information or new people. I could be stuck in my isolated home and still have hours of things to do. Sometimes I think the people that say things like "I wish we could go back to before everyone had the internet" never lived in an area where, without the internet, you never really had anything to begin with.