i spent a few days this week, enjoying my break before returning to the office, sitting uptown – doing some reading, drinking coffee and chatting with random people as they came by.
a few times, i was simply watching people as they walked by – some on a break from others, others running errands and some just filling the void. about 8 of every 10 people that walked by had their faces buried in phone.
are we really that busy? i was joking with a friend the other night, remembering the first time my parents got a cell phone – it was huge! i’m not sure that we ever figured out how to use it and the signal was never that good – it was still cool to be able to say that we had a phone in the car.
remember when people would say “hi” to each other as they passed on the sidewalks? now, we text/email/facebook/tweet. those are great and i use them too and i’ve been part of the crowd with my face buried. i feel rebellion stirring within me. why should everyone have constant contact and access to me – 24/7.
i want to look around while i’m walking and say hi. i want to see the world and not just read about it through someone’s status update. i want to hear how people are doing, in more than 140 characters.
can we find the balance? i want to try. you might call, email, text or message and have to wait for a reply – i might be reconnecting. i’ll get back to you, maybe we can meet face-to-face.
You think it’s bad in SJ? Try living in TO where people are texting as they cross the street (wonder why so many people are getting hit by cars?)