Earlier today, I popped into a meeting to talk with a few teachers about whether or not they would be interested in my new Blogging Club. They had expressed interest in the past, so I figured they would be a good starting point. We had a quick chat about the importance of teachers using the tools they are expected to use in the classrooms for their own learning. I felt they seemed genuinely interested, but one comment by one of the teachers really stuck in my head, and like any decent blogger I have been thinking about writing this post all day.

She said, “Yeah Jabiz but you seem to spend a lot of time on the computer. I want to have a life.” I am paraphrasing what she said. I know this teacher fairly well, so I didn’t take offense to her comment. I am quite certain that she wasn’t implying that I don’t have a life, and this post is not a defense of my behaviors, but it really got me thinking, do people really think that using technology is a choice to be made that opposes having a life? Do people think that tech-geeks choose the vacant lifeless draw of their screens over “real” life?

I see technology as a tool (How many times do we need to make this point?) that allows me to do the very things that make up my life. It is not my life itself. I decided to make a list of the aspects of my life that are important to me. In order to show that technology is simply a tool to enhance my “real” life I will share how I use a variety of these tools for each aspect of my life. The following is what having a life means to me, with or without technology.

First and foremost my number one priority is spending time with my 19-month-old daughter. Contrary to what many non-digital people believe, we techies value authentic “real” life experience just as much as others. I feel that people who are not comfortable with technology see those who are, as somehow lacking the ability to enjoy nature, or the non-digital experiences. Having said that the time I spend with my daughter is the single most important thing that I do. We play, we dance, we sing, we bathe, we eat, we are living in the truest sense of the word. When it comes to my daughter, we use Skype so that she can see her Grandparents on a weekly basis. She already says Grand Ma every time we bring out the laptop. I also use her blog to keep our family posted with pictures and videos. If I do not post pictures every week, I will hear it form several family members.

I have developed a strong love of gardening. I am awed by the organic nature of nature. I love spending time watering my garden, raising plants in my classroom, and simply playing in the dirt. Raising plants is probably the antithesis of technology, but I love using my blogs and video to try and share the satisfaction I get from this hobby. I spend much of my time weekend time monitoring my garden. I am currently growing tomatoes, cucumbers, red peppers, and basil. The pictures I take and share make the experience more authentic for me.

I love to read. I am currently reading the seventh book in a series of seven books by Gore Vidal called the Narratives of Empire. I have been reading these books since June. I have been reading one book after another since I was nineteen. Reading is a fully integrated activity in my daily life. I would survive without books. While I love reading blogs and other websites, I have a profound love and respect for the written word in the form of books. I love the smell of the pages in a fresh book. I strongly believe that literature is the path to human understanding. However, I also see the value in using technology to share my thoughts on what I read and try to instigate healthy discussions. I also use Web tools to keep track of the books I read on sites like Librarything.

I love music. I listen to music every second I can. I love to strum my guitar and record my mediocre recordings. I use technology to share my music with friends and family on Facebook or complete strangers on Youtube. I use sites like Last FM to keep track of listening charts, so I can meet people with similar interests. I use my iPod so as to be sure that my entire collection goes where I go: in my classroom, my bike, or my trip to Tunis. I  use my blogs to write on most of the subjects on this list. Music is no different.

I love photography. I enjoy my ability to capture my unique viewpoint through the lens. I use technology to enhance my photos on Photoshop to create CD covers, magazine covers, or to simply capture the beauty of places I have been and people I have seen. I use sites Flickr to store my work and JPG Magazine to share it with others.

I love traveling and delving into new cultures. I find comfort in writing about my experiences or documenting them in photographs.

I have recently discovered that I love to ride my bike, however limited around town, and I have developed an affinity for filmmaking.  I have combined these two loves by using technology to share my work with over two thousand viewers on YouTube.

The point I am trying to make is that I do not see technology as something I do other than live my life; it is something I use in order to help do the things I love. I feel I have a very rich life raising my daughter, playing music, creating art, writing, reading, and finally the one thing I have yet to mention. Learning.

I use technology to help me find answers, create discussions, compare ideas, and ultimately as a tool for reflecting on how I process information. I use my network to help me form my own views, learn new skills, and better understand the world in which I live. I haven’t mentioned how I use technology in the classroom, because that is the point of this entire blog, but I hope it is obvious that I want my students to find ways that they can use technology to do the things they love. The point is not to use gadgets because they are the new hip thing to do. I am not advocating that people ignore their lives in order to use technology in their lives. The point is to have a “life.” Live it to the fullest and see if you can find ways for technology to enhance what you already do. Live, reflect, share, communicate, connect, change, grow…

Just so I am not misunderstood, I am not promoting that every human act can be enhanced by technology. A good meal at a NYC restaurant, or a quiet walk in the woods, sitting meditation under a tree, scuba diving in the Andaman Sea, or simply sharing a cup of tea with a friend come to mind as life experiences that need no technology to make them any better, but our choices need not be black or white. To respond to the teacher I spoke with today I say, we can use technology effectively and still have a life. It is a matter of understating which tools are right for each task.

The beauty is when I look at a post like the one I just wrote, I realize how these tools have actually helped link all of my interests together. When people ask me what I have been up to, I offer the trademark response: nothing. I say click here or here or here. As a writer, a learner, a teacher, an artist, or simply as a human being I am thrilled to have the tools that allow me this connectedness.

It is time to go play guitar, watch some TV with my wife, read a few pages of my book, and get a good night sleep. I will leave my RSS reader alone for tonight. I will not check on my student blogs or their wikis. I will not respond to emails or play on Facebook. I do have a life after all….