Technology is a wonderful thing — in a terrifying sort of way.
I’m an unashamed gadget lover and have spent way too much money in the past on doodads that I convinced myself I just had to have. When I have more time someday, I’ll bore you to tears about the Betamax video player I once had.
Long story short: When the newest technological gadget for home use comes along, chances are I will buy it just as soon as my budget allows. Whether I actually need the gizmo is a subject for debate.
But smart phones, for some strange reason, were a different matter. While my friends happily extolled the virtues of having the world at their fingertips, I was satisfied to make do with a simple flip phone, which did little more than make and receive calls and texts, as well as take truly awful photos.
I don’t really know why I was so reluctant to make the smart phone leap. Like I said, I’m no Luddite, railing against the evils of technology. But for years, I resisted the siren call of the smart phone.
Perhaps it was because I saw what happened to too many people who became smart phone owners. Simply put, too many of them became slaves to the darned things.
If you think I’m joking, go to a restaurant or some other public place and just sit and count the number of people whose heads are buried in their smart phones. The things have become so ubiquitous that it’s almost strange to see someone without one.
One of the saddest examples of that was when I saw three teenagers sitting in a booth at a fast-food shop a year or so ago. These three youngsters, who had supposedly gone out to have a good time with each other, never said a word to each other. Instead, they stared intently at their smart phones, barely looking up.
Perhaps they were texting each other.
Finally, however, I took the plunge two years ago and the results have been, shall we say, mixed. One one hand, I now have a virtual world of information at my fingertips. On the other, however, I have become just like the people I used to mock.
Again, I don’t want to give you the wrong idea. A world with smart phones is better than one without the devices. If I could somehow go back in time and tell my great-grandparents that one day, a hand-held device made of plastic and silicon would be able to let you talk to anybody, practically anywhere, take high-quality photographs (in color) and allow you to access just about any bit of information you ever wanted, they’d probably think I was possessed. Well, first they’d want to know just what plastic and silicone were, then they’d order of up the exorcism.
But we can do that, and the amazing thing is that it’s no big deal. Is this an amazing time to be alive or what?
I love my smart phone, but I’m also a bit scared of it, basically because it’s taking over my life.
Let me give you an example. The other morning, I woke up (courtesy of the alarm feature on my smart phone) and one of the first things I did was check the sports scores (courtesy of my smart phone) and message a friends (ditto). Keep in mind that I have a computer in my house which has Internet capability and all that good stuff. The point I’m trying to make is the smart phone is making me so lazy, I couldn’t be bothered to get up and walk over to the computer.
If smart phones ever make coffee or cook food, I may never get out of bed.
But complaining about smart phones is about as useful as barking at the sun. They are here to stay. What I must be cautious about is not becoming too entranced with the things that I neglect the outside world.
So, I’m going to start a project. Each day, I will set aside time to go somewhere or do something.
I’ve already selected my first destination — it got a glowing review on my smart phone.
Steve Reagan is a staff writer at the Snyder Daily News. Comments about his column may be emailed to news@snyderdailynews.com.