In the days before technology, people amused themselves with writing. They read books, wrote letters, played games and took walks—all of which now sound completely alien to me as I vegetate in front of my computer screen, waiting for my next show to download online.

Having been born into the technology era, I can barely remember a time when I would pass up the opportunity to catch up on one of my favorite TV shows. The day I discovered that TV was available for free online was a major turning point in my life—whether it was for better or worse is debatable.

I vaguely recall carrying a book with me everywhere when I was in elementary school; I loved reading. Now, however, I can name more free-stream sites off the top of my head than books intended for my age group.

Being able to marathon an entire season of a show (like “Veronica Mars,” “One Tree Hill,” “Chuck,” etc) in one sitting isn’t something to be proud of, especially when you’ve done it multiple times. Nevertheless, it can be considered a skill and I’ve learned quite a few tips to aid me in my quest for Internet TV.

Knowing how to sync a link’s audio with a duplicate link’s video so that the characters no longer look like they’re speaking a different language takes practice. When clips take too long to load, opening them in multiple links at six-minute intervals saves valuable time. And always remember to click full-screen.

There was a point during my freshman year where I kept up with nine different shows at once. I was a few seasons behind on some of them, which left a whole host of “new” episodes at my disposal. My TV schedule effectively replaced my calendar. Instead of going out and interacting with real people, I regularly found myself choosing to catch up on old shows. I had a problem.

When the two-and-a-half hour series finale of “LOST” aired, I was living in Europe. It was being shown live at 5:30 a.m. due to the time difference, so my sister and I went to a friend’s house to watch it on his big-screen. We all had school the same day, but it was worth it.

I’m sure I’m not the only teenager who has experienced a TV overdose—when your head is pounding, your eyes ache and you can barely stay awake, but you can’t stop watching. I may, however, be one of the very few high schoolers who has managed to watch three seasons of a show in less than three days.

Once I arrived at SHS at the start of sophomore year from England, it dawned on me that my addiction was severely unhealthy. I spent full weekends in my bedroom, idly observing my unwatered plants grow moldy and die, wondering whether House and Cuddy would ever officially tie the knot. My grades took a sharp nosedive and I finally realized that if I wanted to get into a respectable college, praying for an extra 12 minutes on Megavideo was not the way to do it.

Currently, I’m on a strict real-television-only diet; no computers. I occasionally allow myself to browse my Netflix instant-queue for dessert, but the elimination of all other TV sites has helped my focus enormously (and I think my eyesight has improved as well). If I can hold out until after finals, I’ll be set.

And who knows? Maybe I’ll even try reading a book.