The Beauty of Technology

Sitting at the bar, it’s dark, people are dancing, stumbling, drinking, laughing, talking…and at every table there is at least one person slouched back in their chair, wide-eyes staring into the bright screen of their cell phone.

It has happened slowly enough to not notice it happening, but the whole world is captured by it.

I remember the first time my cell phone rang in public – at Ikea, I was horrified. I lowered my head and whispered “I’ll call you back” into my bulky hand-phone.

I used to take notice of people talking on their phones in public, I have no idea when that stopped.

Traveling and living in Asia – I suppose so many things were different – I didn’t take specific notice of the hand phone. Local or foreign, young or old – Everyone has one. Everyone is on one. Nobody is quiet.

Maybe it’s rude? I am aware of my behavior. Among certain friends I know I can stop mid-conversation and check my phone because I got a text. With other friends I wouldn’t. Sometimes I’ll wait to check it. Sometimes I can’t stop myself from checking it.

Back to sitting at the bar talking among friends – at a glance I perceived it as anti-social. But, sometimes two people stare into their phones together, side-by-side. Sometimes one person will show the other person their screen, presumably a text message or picture, they laugh. It’s instant. Instead of discussing a call they had with so-and-so earlier, it’s happening now. I don’t text to be anti-social, it is a social thing to me, I make plans, I joke, I lol, I can send a quick hello to my friend in Canada while I’m at a crag on Railay, all in real time.

I do agree that much is lost in the translation between face-face/voice-voice v. text. So you learn to communicate with other signifiers. My vocabulary now consists of numerous acronyms and instead of clenching my fists in rage and raising my voice, I write in BOLD ALL CAPS, add a few !!! and my point is clear. I can even imagine the person on the other end of the phone/computer saying what they are writing. It has the same rules as email (only more informal) – and who can imagine life without email?

I suppose some people think it’s rude, but whatever, they just don’t do it – yet. It could be a cohort thing – age, social group – but I don’t think so. I wonder if it’s just some people are ‘old school?’ A relatively new technology, a new medium for instant person-person communication, some people are opposed to change? One friend pointed out that everything is so instant…now this…but, what’s wrong with instant?

~ by finnland on March 22, 2007.