As a New York native, there’s not a person I pass by daily who isn’t looking down at their handheld device. Sure I’d appreciate a wave or a friendly hello from time to time, but I find myself doing the same thing so it doesn’t bother me… until my parents do it.You see, the New York Times recently posted an article that talked about the way people feel about their smartphones, particularly the iPhone. The author described our attitudes and behaviors toward our phones as surpassing addiction mode which paralleled feelings of love, based on our brain activity.
Of course, I know some people who feel incomplete, isolated or even “naked” without their smartphones, as if it’s their means of protection. Some even go as far as placing their phones under their pillow while sleeping (I know way too many crazy people), so I definitely see the connection between the smartphone and a loved one, being that a smartphone is like our other half, even when he/she isn’t present. We’ve grown to love technology so much that we can’t do without it and there’s a longing for it when we don’t have access to it because it’s always joined to our hip.
Recently my own parents have taken an extra liking to their cell phones (better late than never!) and have experimented with texting, though rather unsuccessfully, I believe there’s potential. For example, last weekend when I went out my parents’ text me: “Ashley, call b4 u pasprk ion” and “fool drive way” – that was it! I was standing there looking at the messages thinking, “what the hell does this mean?!” Later, when I called them I realized it was supposed to mean, “Ashley, call us before you park in the driveway because some fool decided to block our driveway.”
And if you think that was bad, check out some more awkward texts from parents in this latest book I picked up, When Parents Text.
Words By: Ashley Kooblall / Photography By: Steve Beadles
