Anyone else feel the tension? Some days I'm not sure the 'conveniences' outweigh the frustrations. Part of me is a little surprised at my torn affections because shouldn't I be on board with technological advances? And shouldn't I, well, be used to it by now?
Here's my frustration:
I hate them because...
1. I am endlessly looking for my cell phone.
It goes from pocket, to purse, to diaper bag, to counter, to car, and I can never ever keep track of it. Some people just say "put it in your pocket' but us women don't have that luxury. My pockets aren't big enough to carry such large contraptions. Poor Jason is always asked to call it so I can find it. Arg!
2. They are always somewhere else when they are ringing.
I am forever sprinting to the far corners of my home to get to the phone in time. I miss home phones that were in every room.
3. They are always on the 'ring' function when you should have put them to vibrate, and they are always on vibrate function when you wish they had their ringer on.
[Case in point, when point 1 is involved: you can't find the phone because the ringer's off]
It goes from pocket, to purse, to diaper bag, to counter, to car, and I can never ever keep track of it. Some people just say "put it in your pocket' but us women don't have that luxury. My pockets aren't big enough to carry such large contraptions. Poor Jason is always asked to call it so I can find it. Arg!
2. They are always somewhere else when they are ringing.
I am forever sprinting to the far corners of my home to get to the phone in time. I miss home phones that were in every room.
3. They are always on the 'ring' function when you should have put them to vibrate, and they are always on vibrate function when you wish they had their ringer on.
[Case in point, when point 1 is involved: you can't find the phone because the ringer's off]
4. They are the cause of many mini-heart-attacks.
Because they're so expensive, and so darn small I always end up losing it, sitting on it, dropping it, etc. "Where's my phone?! I think I left it somewhere!" or Smash! "I dropped it!" "I spilled something on it!" [heart palpitation]
5. I don't memorize information, I store it.
If the phone gets lost- I'm hooped! My calendar, my contacts, phone numbers, everything is in there. I don't even have phone numbers memorized cause most of the time I don't need them. I had a patient awhile back who was in hospital and his cell phone battery was dead but his charger was at home and he was freaking out. Why? Cause he couldn't even call anyone to ask them to bring the charger in because he didn't know anyone's number! Scary.
6. How do you teach a kid to dial 9-11?
It's not as simple anymore. Now-a-days your kid has to be able to find the phone, turn it on, 'swipe' across or enter a pin, find the 'call' function, and then dial 9-11 and then 'send' before emergency help is on the wall. No more picking up the phone and dialing. [This concerns me at night when I'm trying to sleep]. On this topic, in general my greatest fear is being somewhere and needing my phone but not being able to find it or its battery being dead. [Shudder].
7. Everyone's always on them or distracted by them.
I feel like the temptation to always be plugged in keeps me from the here and now and the person right in front of me.
8. They are a magnet for small, dirty fingers.
9. People are always texting while I'm driving and the temptation to look and answer is always a challenge. (Maybe I should just turn the phone off while driving?!)
10. Maps and GPS on a phone is just not as convenient as the paper kind if you ask me.
Zooming in and out on a 4" screen? Annoying. Sometimes you just need a map in big form.
But, you know, they are kinda fun....and I love them because...
1. Need to kill time?
Waiting at a dr's office? Great! Get caught up on e-mail! Love that you can check your e-mail anywhere. No more writing out addresses on sticky notes, just look up the e-mail.
2. Texting.
I looooooove this form of communication. Forget awkward phone calls about menial things. Thinking of someone? Want to just say hi? Want to send a useless but hilarious emoticon? Done.
3. Taking pictures.
I love that I can take pictures or videos of the kids everywhere without carting around the Nikon. So convenient and unintrusive.
4. Which brings me to....instagram.
Love, love, love.
5. It makes me feel safer.
Somehow I feel like when I have the phone while driving or with the kids, just knowing that I can call someone at any point makes me feel a bit more secure.
6. Last ditch effort to entertain.
When I'm in a crunch and I have nothing at my fingertips to entertain my little men, my phone comes to the rescue. Games? Flashcards? Photos? Videos? Click!
7. Mini flashlight.
Love!
8. Calendar function. Drool.
I used to be a hard core paper planner junkie. Jason had to pry my calendar out of my tight fist and I was very slow in converting. But now? I love that I can see my schedule on my phone and update it on the fly.
9. Google!
Want to know how far Timbuktu is from Montreal? Why the sky is blue? Why you can't find your phone? Google it! Anytime, anywhere.
Hmmm. Guess the verdict is in! I hate them more than I love them. Maybe it's time to think about some changes to my lifestyle, habits, or technological gadgets.
What about you? Love or hate cell phones?
What about you? Love or hate cell phones?
Sleep easy on Hate Point 8, Shannon. iPhones have an "emergency call" feature, still have to swipe but no need to learn a pin. :)
ReplyDeleteLove your astuteness to even catch these observations! and so funny and too true. on a more serious note, I have been seriously thinking about the issue of technology and information flow (or tsunami at times, as it were). This is long (40 min) but a very thought provoking topic lecture I heard on digital/spiritual formation. It's in two parts here:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wSJ-ats1bHw
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e_lFp6nZkq0
Lots of food for thought especially as you raise your boys in this digital age.