Portable Media in Everyday Life

I can remember back in high school when iPods had just been released and almost everyone had one and would listen to it non-stop. Whether it was walking down the hallways, eating lunch or sitting in class, the iPod was a major trend in my years at high school. It was considered the "cool" thing to always have at least one headphone of your iPod in your ear at all times. When I look back at my high school experience, I can clearly remember using my iPod to engage in my own world whenever I came across something that was of no interest to me. I would use my iPod as a way of indulging in my own reality and own thoughts. Till this day I still use my iPod for a number of different reasons and most of the time I don't even realise how much I rely on it. For example, whenever I go to the gym for a work out I always have to have my iPod with me, so I can keep my mind occupied. The other day I arrived at the gym and realised I didn't have my iPod, I tried to continue my workout but I only lasted 5 minutes without it. Initially I thought I would be able to finish my workout but until I actually started doing it without my iPod, I began to realise just how much I need and rely on it. I feel that portable media is a technology that people are constantly using in everyday life. For individuals this creates a sort of reliance on portable media devices because people begin to integrate them into their daily routines. Is it a good idea for people to rely on their portable media devices to get through the day? Is a cell phone or iPod really going to make the difference between a good day and a bad day? I believe yes, there are so many useful technologies that cell phones and iPods can provide us, that it would just be inefficient of us not to use these inventions to our advantage. Especially in the crazy world that we live in today, there are so many things going on at once and without the technology of a cell phone and other portable media devices, certain aspects of our lives would become complicated and disorganised.