It was the start of an era for sure. On this date 15 years ago, I received my first-ever iPhone. The University of Montana purchased it on my behalf for work purposes but it would double as my personal phone, too.

This was not the first iPhone I received in 2011 but rather the upgraded iPhone 5 I received in Oct. 2012.

I was pretty jacked up on September 7, 2011, when I handled that sleek piece of technology for the initial time. How jacked up was I? Upon getting off work I went straight home and wrote a 1,000-word blog post about my enthusiasm.

And perhaps that is the most cringe-inducing part of this story. Go back and read that blog post and have yourself a good laugh at my poor writing, immaturity, and utter cluelessness. It’s baaaaad.

But I want to move on from that. Rather, I just want to mark the 15th anniversary of my entry into smart phone mania. I was totally blown away by the power I had in my hands back in 2011 and I still marvel at everything my iPhone can do today. It is my clock, camera, calendar, web browser, bill payer, instant messenger, navigator, music player, e-mailer, and newspaper.

And, oh yeah, I make calls on it too.

Holding my iPhone 5 in 2012.

Over the decade and a half, I have owned either three or four iPhones plus a couple work-specific iPhones as well. They have lasted me all 15 years as I have never taken a chance on an Android. Although my record with cell phones was spotty before I received my first iPhone, since then, I haven’t lost, cracked, or damaged any of my smart devices. Excuse me while I pat myself on the back.

I will be the first to say that iPhones have not changed me (or society) completely for the better. They have drastically decreased face-to-face communication, caused device addiction, and promoted laziness. So today, I am not necessarily celebrating this anniversary but rather just marking it. Don’t Blink.