the cell phone curse

A family meal at Next Door proved to be a great idea. There were six of us in total as we awaited the waiter to place our orders.

Around the table, the four younger members of the party were all engaging with their iPhones. There is something curiously addictive about cell phones - something that the iPhone seems to double. The younger members are not teenagers, but in their twenties. It is a sign of the age.

The restaurant owner wandered over to tell us about the special. First he jokingly pointed to the iPhones and said that we should be engaging with real people. Everyone agreed, and the phones were all packed away.

The drinks arrived followed by the first course. The atmosphere was full of fun with a few conversations going. Every now and again, various members of the party would reach for their phones as messages arrives. I ordered them to be packed away again. The temptation to pull out the phone at regular intervals was difficult to suppress. It has become a conditioned reflex.

I have sat through many business meetings where the delegates have been constantly busy on their laptops. They claim to be able to multi-task. In many cases, the laptop has been replaced with a smart phone. Half of the members are busy with conversations on whatsapp. They truly believe that they are also at the meeting.

Much has been written about Internet addiction, addiction to computer games and similar in the past. As a rule, reports have been exaggerated.

The new-age technology poses a much bigger problem. It is not a small portion of the population that are affected but the majority. You see it in bars where people have come together to meet. Instead of talking to each other each is absorbed in their phone. They don't even hear the waiter when he asks to take their order. You may observe the same thing at gallery openings, restaurants and even in cinemas.

Next time, I collect all the phones before we sit.