The Internet

Sherry's talk was actually my favorite this week because it brought up many good, relevant points. 

"We expect more from technology, than we do each other". That statement is true. I get to work in the morning, and I don't expect any of my patients to treat me nicely throughout the day. I don't expect my coworkers to be in a good mood. I don't expect for things to get done and go as planned. But, I do expect my computer to run so I can do the basic functions of my job. I expect my phone's alarm to wake me up on time every morning so I can make it to work. I expect my home computer to not be installing updates by the time I get home in the evening to do my nightly studying or homework. I don't even expect common respect or courtesy anymore from people I encounter on normal daily transactions, but I expect my technology to work to get me through the day. I know I'm not the only one living a life like this. There wouldn't be Ted Talks on this subject, if I was the only one. 

Yet Sherry tells us, "We should think of solitude as a good thing", and we should! Growing up, we turned off the T.V. for dinner. We weren't, (and still are not) allowed phones at the table. Even if mom or dad needed to take a call from somebody during dinner, they let the voicemail pick it up and then they returned the call when the meal was done. I remember having friends come over that would find this dining courtesy completely backwoods and ridiculous. My parents heavily believed in family time. They still do. Even today, as grown adults, if we all go out to eat at a crowed diner, where we know our food is not going be up in a few minutes, we talk to each other! We discuss our days, things going on at our own homes, things that come up at work and at school. 

We never so much had to 'reclaim' our dining room space, because technology never took it over but I have been in and around so many homes who have had to. I have lived in room mate situations where we would make meals than sit down together and just be on our phones and lap tops. The same thing when we would go out to eat. I never saw it as a issue until I had a boyfriend tell me how rude it was I wasn't giving him my undivided attention one day at breakfast. I hadn't even thought about that. It was just habit around friends. I was raised completely different than how I was acting. I dropped that rude habit fast, after being called out on it, and now I hardly take my phone even out of my bag when I'm dining with friends or peers. It's not a set rule, or me trying to take my life back from technology, it is a respect thing. People do deserve undivided attention.

As far as digital gaming goes, that is something I never got into and probably won't ever. I don't have the time or motivation to focus on one game for too long. When Trivia Crack came out, I will say I did play that one for a week or two because it was interesting and my peers were playing it with me. Once I've gotten something down, I usually get bored with it fast and drop it rather quick. 

I've always been curious what drew people into gaming and kept so enthralled by it. All I can chalk it up to is peers and the community in which they've entered. For me, I downloaded that one game strictly because my friends wanted me to. Some of them still kept the game and played it for months, unlike me. I just can't commit to something I'm getting nothing out of in my real life. 

I can see how people can say the same about social media though. I may not spend any time on digital gaming, but I do spend time on social media. To be honest, I probably spend about two hours total a day with all my combined check ins and quick scrolls through timelines. Two hours totals up to fourteen hours a week too fast. That is fourteen hours I could be spending with friends, or going out to eat, or kayaking, studying, working. But, I spend that time behind my phone. Even if it is not to win a round of Candy Crush, or beating somebody at Fortnite, I'm still on it, wasting probably the same amount of time just looking at other people's lives.