Umbilical Cord?
Where’s your phone? Did I make you look, or is in in your hand? It seems we have gotten so attached to these items that we cannot function without them. I laughingly call it my umbilical cord.
Our phones, particularly for millennials, but for us baby boomers too, are much more than communication devices. As a matter of fact, we do much more than talk on them. For many, talk is one of the lesser uses of the phone.
Our phones are our source for weather, news, games, photographs, and of course social media. Some people watch movies on them, and certainly stream the latest sports. I remember my nephew’s wife getting angry with him as he was checking on the Georgia Bulldogs while at a wedding reception. Perfectly acceptable if you ask me. Of course, it’s important to be discreet at times (like at wedding receptions).
I’ll lay my phone down at the office as I move from room to room doing my chores, and suddenly I will wonder. Where’s my phone? There’s that moment of panic, not knowing. But all other duties aside, a quick look finds it where I left it (duh).
Since I keep my phone with me most of the time, I have a bad habit of setting it down where I shouldn’t some times. For instance, the other day I was doing laundry, and carried the phone in the laundry room with me.
After I put the clothes away, I began to wonder… where’s my phone? Right where I left it…on the dryer. I had to call it twice from Jimmy’s phone before I located it. That’s not a good feeling.
It’s worse if you’ve been out somewhere. I carry my phone to the grocery store, and often use it while in there. However, I’m currently carrying a large purse, and the phone gets lost in it. So, I’ll leave the store, and see where Jimmy has called me to tell me of something we need at the store. But the real kicker is when I get in the truck and wonder where it is. If I’ve used it, I panic, thinking I may have left where I used it last.
And besides losing my connection to the world if my phone disappears, these things are expensive. You can pay $20 a month, then get a refurbished phone for a whopping $100, or you can take your chances, and if a new phone is needed you’re looking at several hundred dollars.
I know some people, particularly the young who want the latest greatest phone. Not me. Normally I’ve become attached to my phone so when it wears out I want something very similar (cause the same thing is never available). However, I think I’ll be glad to replace the phone I currently have…even though I’m hoping that’s years down the road. This one I’ve had several months, and I just don’t like it. It’s cantankerous. Or maybe it’s the user.
Recently, my stepdaughter posted a photo on Facebook of her having lunch with her daughter. Guess what? Her daughter was playing no her phone. And obviously, mom had hers out taking a photo.
I know a lot of people who have “no phone time” at the dinner table. I heartily endorse that. Jimmy and I generally don’t use ours at the table, but occasionally will answer a call. Of course, it can be aggravating when you try to reach someone during their “no phone time.” Some people aren’t quite as attached to theirs, and may take hours or, heaven forbid, days to respond to a text message.
While writing this column, I’ve taken a break to play a few games, answered and/or sent a half dozen text messages, and seen the sad, sad news of Notre Dame Cathedral on fire.
How did we live without a smart phone? It’s an amazing thing. I know I’m attached to mine, and although it is a cordless phone, it’s as attached as an umbilical cord.