With the launch of "Pokemon Go," and the many occurrences that have stemmed from its release (including numerous accidents and injuries), I wanted to discuss something that is always on my mind: the power of technology. I am not talking about our devices' extremely sophisticated and hi-tech abilities, but rather the power that our devices have over us.
We have reached a point in our lives where we can use our smartphones, or some form of technology, for pretty much anything. But with that power, many things have been lost.
The biggest thing we have lost is the ability to be present in our own lives. We aren't experiencing, we're posting, everything and everywhere. "Do it for the Insta" has officially taken over. Our phones are now the most important things in our lives, as they carry our most prized possession— our social media accounts.
Our realities have shifted into the realities we put on social media. If our friends seem to be doing something more fun or exciting than we are, we feel the need to one up each other and go on posting sprees. I love social media as much as the next selfie queen, but it has turned into a competitive sport, and the prize goes to the person with the most likes and comments. We have started to measure our popularity and self-worth by the amount of responses we get on a given post, and what we do to create that "perfect post" is pretty ridiculous.
We want to show the world that we are doing all of these incredible things, but it's really all for show. Nowadays, we may go somewhere, say a museum, and instead of actually looking around and enjoying what's around us, we take pictures of the art, and definitely a couple of selfies, only to post them with an "artsy" quote we Googled on the spot. Then we leave. Wasn't that fun?
We've allowed our phones to take precedent over the world around us, and with that, our perception of what is appropriate and what is not. Something I read about "Pokemon Go" was that people have gone into cemeteries, places of worship, holocaust museums and the even The World Trade Center in hopes of catching virtual Pokemon. I am shocked that people think it's more important to catch a fake Pokemon than be respectful of any of these places. It's just a game. It's not real life.
On an even simpler level, people should not be on their phones during a conversation or meal. All of my friends know that my biggest pet peeve is using phones during a meal, and if you want to go to dinner with me, your phone is out of sight. Personally, I feel it's really rude to be on your phone and texting other people when we are trying to spend time together. Can you really not hold off for an hour? If you so desperately need to talk to the person you are texting, you should've gone to dinner with them instead. #sorrynotsorry
Text messages aren't even the biggest problem: it's the constant Snapchatting and Instagramming. It's crazy to have to wait 10 minutes to eat while someone is trying to capture the perfect snap. Just enjoy the food you are eating and the people you are with. Not everyone in the world needs to know you ordered a veggie burger with a large order of cheese fries.
Overall, we cannot allow our phones to take over our lives. There is so much out there to see and experience, and it is definitely more enjoyable when you're looking with your own eyes instead of through a screen.
Put down the phone and start living.
