Phonie Phones Thursday

I sit here on my lunch break every day, usually watching youtube videos or movie trailers on imdb.com, and sometimes I write blogs to the few views I have.  Today I started the beginning of my lunch break thinking about society and technology and that video most of you have probably have seen where that guy says that technology is the problem for society today because it cuts personal communication.  I really liked the video myself, and had a debate on whether the guy was right with one of my friends.  (My friend made some good points, but I still agree that technology has hurt personal contact.)

I decided to delete and create a new snapchat today when my lunch break started.  I had so many random people I drunkenly added at bars, people I no longer have contact with, or random celebrity accounts.  I was getting sick of scrolling through their stories (yes I realize I didn’t have to watch them, but I did, sorry.)  So I deleted it.  I guess I just wanted a fresh start, and to have people that I actually want on their that I converse with on a regular basis, or that I am curious to what they are up to.

In a way, snapchat has become the new phone number.  Its easy to give away a snapchat name instead of a number because you can simply delete someone if they get annoying, or if they get weird and creepy.  Sure you can block a phone number, but that takes a little more effort.  People can also add others so much easier just by holding their thumb over your little ghost thing and add you quickly.  I added two people from a wedding I recently went to that way, and the next day I was pretty confused who they were.

Snapchat is also another way of gaining followers.  People post their snapchat names on every social media.  Instagram, Twitter, Facebook (I just did it), and in dating apps like Tinder.  Why would you put that on your tinder?  You know how many creeps are out there and add you even if you don’t reciprocate the right swipe?

I feel like snapchat is the basis for communication these days.  Concerts, parties, sporting events, these places you don’t even need to buy admission to because you can just watch them on snapchat.  It is so crazy how much it is used.

Now let me talk about how I feel like technology is ruining communication.  You probably wont agree but that’s okay, this is my blog, not yours.  I think technology and texting is ruining communication because of people being addicted to it.  You go to a party and people sit on their phones and text people who aren’t there.  Sure, they could be finding the next place to go, or simply inviting that person over, but when you sit in your phone for that long, you probably aren’t doing those things.

I went to a friends party last Friday, and it was a blast.  Nobody was really on their phones, we played board games, drank beer and conversed.  Sure, there was an occasional snap story put up by someone, but it was because the game we were playing was hysterical.  We didn’t text other people, we didn’t snap chat people directly, we didn’t log onto Facebook and read articles or look at memes, we didn’t read blogs (you should if its mine though) and we didn’t make phone calls.  We literally sat there (more like stood) and enjoyed each other.  My friend texted me the next day asking if we were getting old because we had fun staying in and playing board games, and I told him that we just matured.  We didn’t need to go out, we didn’t need to sit on our phones and show the world what we were doing, or see what others were doing because we were having too much fun to care.

I am not saying I don’t have fun with other friends because they are on their phones, but I am saying my goal is to be on my phone less and enjoy the people around me more.  I understand that technology make sit possible to enjoy other people who aren’t at the same party, but I feel like you aren’t as invested (even though you may say you are or believe you are).

My friend from last week is the best example of that.  He invited me over through text the night before.  I had to go play hockey but when it was over, I drove over.  When I got there, I had to wait like 10 minutes at the front door because he wouldn’t answer my calls or texts.  He was too invested in the people around him that I couldn’t even be mad.  He truly knows how to enjoy his friends.

What I am getting at here, is technology is great for somethings.  It can help you promote your work, get you out of giving up your number, and can help you communicate with people who aren’t around you. But, just try hanging up, and hanging out.  Your work and other friends can wait for you to enjoy your time with the people around you.

Sincerely,

Daniel Eric,

p.s. Get out there and plant some trees this Spring.  If you can’t do it yourself, you can check out tentree.com.  They have some pretty sweet articles of clothing, and they plant ten trees when you make a purchase.  You can also get ten free trees to plant by becoming a member of the Arbor Day Foundation.

https://shop.arborday.org/content.aspx?page=memberships

“He that plants trees loves others besides himself.”- Thomas Fuller