[nat sound of technology related things: typing, a message being sent, notifications]
Technology is an integral part of many student’s daily lives. It’s how we keep in touch with family, communicate with friends, and even do our homework. However, there are other things that are equally as important.
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ESHAAL KIZILBASH: My paints. I like to paint a lot in my free time, So it’s a really nice destress that I do a lot.
That was Weinberg freshman Eshaal Kizilbash. She started painting during the pandemic and now, she paints in her dorm to end her day.
KIZILBASH: It’s a nice little wind down activity. Music is pretty much what I listen to all day, so it’s only natural to have it on while I paint.
Kizilbash said her last painting was of a jellyfish she found on Pinterest.
[nat sound of flipping pages of a book]
Graduate student Steffi Chen finds relaxation in reading books, a hobby she took up during winter break.
STEFFI CHEN: When I got back into reading I was just like, ‘Oh, yeah, there’s like, so much there’ and it’s something that I’ve been doing every single day now, too.
As a computer engineer, Chen said she spends a lot of time with technology, but books are a way to get a break from it.
Chen said she was surprised to learn how many other Northwestern students are avid readers. However, this is now working in her favor.
CHEN: I got a lot of recommendations. Now it’s like, if I’m wanting to read, I know there’s a list I can go back on.
Chen said she is currently rereading the Alex Rider series.
Regardless of what they’re studying, according to a University of Louisville study, college students spend an average of seven to nine hours using technology on a daily basis. Five of those hours are spent on school work, leaving up to four hours for recreational use.
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Weinberg sophomore Geovanni Lopez values the items he uses on a daily basis.
GEOVANNI LOPEZ: Footwear. A good jacket. A backpack. Wallet, I put everything in my wallet, like my wildcard stays there.
Lopez said keeping his Wildcard in his wallet prevents him from losing it.
LOPEZ: I feel like me keeping my wildcard in the wallet helps me never forget my wildcard. My roommate, he always forgets his wildcard because he just has it out in his pocket.
Bulkiness is also an important characteristic in a wallet for Lopez, especially after he lost his wallet on the CTA his freshman year.
LOPEZ: I was wearing sweatpants with big pockets and they just slipped out, but it was a very slim wallet, so I didn’t notice. That’s why I appreciate the bulk of this one because every time it’s not there I notice right away. I put random gift cards in just to make it stuffy.
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Whether it’s things used to destress, like paints and books, or an everyday necessity like a wallet, technology isn’t the only important thing in life, even though sometimes, it takes up nine hours of a day.
From WNUR News, I’m Anavi Prakash.
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