Cell phones are like a disease these days: they're everywhere. People are constantly seen looking at their phone in their down time, and it's become a social norm at this point. It's been addressed by multiple TV shows, but in particular, "Parks and Rec" really captures what this generation's addiction is like. Even if you haven't seen "Parks and Rec," the content of this episode is pretty accurate.
In this particular episode, Tom Haverford gets in a car accident while he was live tweeting while driving. He gets called into court for using his phone, and his punishment: he can't use any type of technology for a week.
So, Tom gets desperate. He makes a paper iPhone, a real life Pinterest board, and he can't even use a GPS to get to work, even though he only lives three miles away. Ron Swanson takes notice and he decides to take Tom out to his remote cabin in the woods and help him deal with his technology use. They start by doing activities like chopping up some wood, and Tom can't deal with it. So, Ron tells Tom to talk out what he does on his phone. And as a result, Tom talks on and on so much that Ron has to stop him. At this point, Ron realizes the severity of the situation. Tom then volunteers to go into town and take Ron's car, but then Ron finds that Tom has crashed the car into a tree as he was using his phone. As punishment, Ron makes Tom read a book on how to repair the car, then do the repair.
As ridiculous as Tom's technology habits seem, they actually apply to this generation. People wake up, usually the first thing they look at is their phones, and then they spend most of their free time on it as opposed to reading a book. Our phones have become such a part of our lives that we don't know what to do without them. In the "Parks and Rec" episode, Tom gets a splinter, then says he needs to go on WebMD just to check to see how to deal with it. You laugh, but some people are like this. But, then it begs the question, why are people so hooked on phones? Psychologically, we like the instant gratification of turning on our phone and seeing the latest social media trend or seeing a text from our friend, but there's more to it. When Tom explains why he's so hooked on his phone, it's applying to all of us.
Sometimes, we use technology to escape our everyday lives. It allows us to forget how our life may be bad right now. But technology isn't the answer. Sure, it's okay occasionally to post something on Instagram, but sometimes we need to lay off. We need to actually get out and experience what's around us. So I challenge you. The next time you're at a party or with a group of friends and something crazy happens and you wanna put it on your snap story, don't. Just live in the moment and have fun, not everything you do needs to be on social media for all to see.
"Sometimes you gotta work a little so you can ball a lot." -Tom Haverford, "Parks and Rec"
