Perpetual Ruminations

Missing Out

My blog entry today is based upon the image for Two Word Tuesday; if you haven't seen it, the image depicts a person outside at a picnic table with their phone in hand, likely texting, their tablet and glasses on the table by a cup. My caption was, "Missing out."

The first impression of the image was of someone out camping but missing out on the beauty around them because they are focused on their phone. Also, they are likely camping with someone but instead of hiking or enjoying outdoor activities with the other person, they are engrossed in the electronics of the day.

First, let me say, I'm not against technology or the wonderful electronics we have in this day and age. I love my smart phone, I have a tablet, a laptop, and a desk computer; they are great. I remember watching our black and white television, trying to get the image sharp enough to see by adjusting the rabbit-eared antennae. Then, with awe and wonder, we got a color television and an antennae on the roof. Wow, living color and three channels, life was good. Add to that, calculators and digital watches -- yes the red, LED watch that only displayed the current time.

Life was good, and with some of the more popular television shows, it was difficult to decide if a person wanted to stay inside and watch them or go outside and engage in activities with friends. Most times, outside won out, but if the weather was crappy, there was the television. Homework was easier thanks to the calculator, even though most of the time, the teachers wanted us to show our work. I even got home on time thanks to the LED watch, or if I really wanted to see a specific show or movie, I knew what time it was.

Of course, with time I grew more interested in girls. I say more interested since I've enjoyed the girls since I was little; my first kiss was with the girl down the street, in her brother's tent the summer before kindergarten. But I digress, the point in context is how girls distracted me from television, using a calculator (why punch in buttons when you can lean in close and show her how to multiply and divide), and even from getting myself home on time because I was so focused on her instead of the LED readout of my watch.

In time we also entered the age of electronic games, most of which were pretty lame, but got better with time. Again, they were fun, but not as fun as spending time with friends, outdoor activities, and girls. But all that has changed now.

People are so absorbed in digital games, cell phones, and television that they seldom interact even close to how we used to. I know, it's not everyone, but it's the majority. For example, one person I know engages in online games with others from around the world. They are his friends, and gaming is his social interaction; outside of this, he really doesn't have any close friends or social life. Well, except doing a bit of snowmobiling with his cousin on Sundays, if the weather permits.

I also see families in the stores, the kids running wild, the parents absorbed in their phones. I see couples and families out dining, all engrossed in their phones instead of conversation. During the nice weather we often go to the lake kayaking, there at the beach, people sunning while the kids swim and play, but they don't notice them, they are glued to their phones. We get together with our own children, who don't come to visit, they spend the majority of their time on their phones, texting someone else. Even at work, break time now is a phone break. In fact, I have noticed when waiting for the store to close, if one person takes out their phone, everyone else soon follows suit.

A while back, a young couple drove to the yard, two attractive people, a young man and his gal. As they pulled up to the guardhouse I noticed them sitting next to each other, snuggled close and both looking at their phones. As I waited for them to produce their paperwork to enter, they were both texting. Were they communicating with each other? Not likely. Even as guests exit the yard, they cannot get their phones out soon enough, and they often look irritated when asked to sign for their items because it interrupts their texting. Yes, they are their with their partners, but neither is engaged with the other, they are both engaged with texting someone else.

It's a sad thing to see this change and know that they are missing out on life around them. It does explain why it's always so busy at night at work, no one wants to go home and interact with their families anymore, it interrupts them from their phones. They are bored if they aren't texting or absorbed with their phones!

They say chivalry is all but dead. Sexting has replaced a romantic evening, couples interact with each other by spending their time texting others and sharing information from others, and intimacy is sharing your texts with your partner. Chivalry isn't just dying out, it's being killed by smartphones. Perhaps there is still hope; perhaps before chivalry dies completely someone will make a chivalry app for our phones...