Uhh, yeah. It's taken longer than Orwell imagined but we are getting there and at a respectable clip.
The second photo of young women absorbed in their "devices" is probably outdated. I've been struck by how many seniors are on these damned things lately. A neighbour turned 80 this year and she habitually checks her smart phone for text messages. A recently departed friend of mine, an Australian, rejected all this nonsense. He didn't even have an answering machine although a number were offered to him free. He figured if someone called and didn't call back, it wasn't important. If they did call back - often enough - they would get through to him eventually. He would, however, go out of his way to come visit you and sit down for a chat, face to face.
I don't have a smart phone, Mound, because I don't want to be constantly connected. I have a feeling that once one has such a device, one cannot resist the allure of constant checking.
.. years ago, an old farmer gave me advice.. I never had a father or mother, so I grabbed it where it was
'the warrior sees everything'
Strange stuff for a young kid from the city.. but I thought it over a lot. He later added another layer.. 'the warrior sees the circumstances converging' Whew ! This was even more challenging.. how could one see into the future ? Years have gone by and 'I get it' .. One can see something happening before it happens & avoid being part of it.. I won't go into detail here but perhaps later.
Meanwhile, I no longer give ground to distracted pedestrians on sidewalks or subway platforms. I walk through them.. just as they will walk through me. Cel phones hit the ground, I care not. Male/female I decide if its a glancing shoulder hit.. a spinerama with phone toss.. or the dreaded full on bangerville. I no longer care, this happens every minute to a power pedestrian like me. At the same time I am stupid polite re people who deserve my attention or even assistance getting along.. sidewalks or subways etc. (full disclosure: I have track level TTC clearance, with cameras for certain reasons - one of my best friends does as well - Toronto Fire, Captain)
It is astonishing to come across my son on the subway.. But there he is.. a paperback or hardcover in hand I try the patient parent rear attack.. 'saw you a mile away, Dad'.. as I pounce upon a lad with 2 inches and 50 pounds over his shrinking dad. Its to laugh. ' 'thought I had you' - 'Saw you on the platform as we arrived, wondered if you would spot me'.. mmn, did not see those circumstances converging.. but he had me nailed. He is a hard guy to miss when walking.. 6' 5" 245.. and he is the power walker. Its astonishing how fast he can go Danforth to Beaches or vice versa, uphill or downhill (it is, one or the other)
But the mobile phone conundrum continues.. I have been on subway cars where I could not find a single passenger not watching TV, playing games or whatever ..
We amuse or distract ourselves at our peril, Sal. John Lennon once wrote that life is what happens when you're busy making other plans. For those captured by their mobile devices, it is what happens when you are updating your status, liking on FB, and retweeting. So little time, so much social media, so much, ultimately, being sacrificed in the process...
P.S. I am always singularly impressed, due to its rarity, when I see someone actually reading a book on public transit or anywhere else, for that matter.
.. as my lovely & bright fiancee would say
ReplyDelete'they are volunteers, not victims'.
it is getting harder to retain faith in people these days, Sal.
DeleteUhh, yeah. It's taken longer than Orwell imagined but we are getting there and at a respectable clip.
ReplyDeleteThe second photo of young women absorbed in their "devices" is probably outdated. I've been struck by how many seniors are on these damned things lately. A neighbour turned 80 this year and she habitually checks her smart phone for text messages. A recently departed friend of mine, an Australian, rejected all this nonsense. He didn't even have an answering machine although a number were offered to him free. He figured if someone called and didn't call back, it wasn't important. If they did call back - often enough - they would get through to him eventually. He would, however, go out of his way to come visit you and sit down for a chat, face to face.
I don't have a smart phone, Mound, because I don't want to be constantly connected. I have a feeling that once one has such a device, one cannot resist the allure of constant checking.
Delete.. years ago, an old farmer gave me advice.. I never had a father or mother, so I grabbed it where it was
ReplyDelete'the warrior sees everything'
Strange stuff for a young kid from the city.. but I thought it over a lot. He later added another layer.. 'the warrior sees the circumstances converging' Whew ! This was even more challenging.. how could one see into the future ? Years have gone by and 'I get it' .. One can see something happening before it happens & avoid being part of it.. I won't go into detail here but perhaps later.
Meanwhile, I no longer give ground to distracted pedestrians on sidewalks or subway platforms. I walk through them.. just as they will walk through me. Cel phones hit the ground, I care not. Male/female I decide if its a glancing shoulder hit.. a spinerama with phone toss.. or the dreaded full on bangerville. I no longer care, this happens every minute to a power pedestrian like me. At the same time I am stupid polite re people who deserve my attention or even assistance getting along.. sidewalks or subways etc. (full disclosure: I have track level TTC clearance, with cameras for certain reasons - one of my best friends does as well - Toronto Fire, Captain)
It is astonishing to come across my son on the subway..
But there he is.. a paperback or hardcover in hand
I try the patient parent rear attack..
'saw you a mile away, Dad'.. as I pounce upon a lad with 2 inches and 50 pounds over his shrinking dad. Its to laugh. ' 'thought I had you' - 'Saw you on the platform as we arrived, wondered if you would spot me'.. mmn, did not see those circumstances converging.. but he had me nailed. He is a hard guy to miss when walking.. 6' 5" 245.. and he is the power walker. Its astonishing how fast he can go Danforth to Beaches or vice versa, uphill or downhill (it is, one or the other)
But the mobile phone conundrum continues.. I have been on subway cars where I could not find a single passenger not watching TV, playing games or whatever ..
We amuse or distract ourselves at our peril, Sal. John Lennon once wrote that life is what happens when you're busy making other plans. For those captured by their mobile devices, it is what happens when you are updating your status, liking on FB, and retweeting. So little time, so much social media, so much, ultimately, being sacrificed in the process...
DeleteP.S. I am always singularly impressed, due to its rarity, when I see someone actually reading a book on public transit or anywhere else, for that matter.
DeletePoliticians now use 1984 as a how to manual, not a warning.
ReplyDeleteI think we were justified in hoping for better things in the 21st century, Owen.
Delete