What would you call a boy taking me out, but distracted by his phone the whole time? I call that my date night. I don’t know if I have the right to call it our official “date” because of what good friends we are. But when he asked me in class the other day, “Would you maybe want to get a bite to eat and catch a movie?,” then picked me up at 7:30 on my doorstep, I took it as a date. Even if the boy himself didn’t take it as that. Not that I was insulted by the fact his anonymous texter was third-wheeling our night, but the fact that he let the digital third wheel be there. Even if our evening was planned in a "just friends" way, we did make plans for just the two of us, without a third party.
That message was so important that he had to stop our date and continue his virtual conversation. Why was he with me and not It? I wish he would have invited the unknown to join us. At least I would have been able to be a part of that intriguing conversation. Did It even know that they were on our date? Or did my date keep his current scene a secret from It? That was my clue and I caught right on. He’s just not that into me. I can’t blame the boy for being so indecisive, I’d be the pot calling the kettle black. If I didn’t have my phone in my pocket and in my hand I would be distracted too. But my grandmother would always scold me whenever I would even carry my phone on me when I was with her. When I planned time with her, I was supposed to give that all time to her. Not to the other person through my iMessage, and she was totally correct. If I wanted intimate time with a text message in the middle of another hangout session, I’m obviously with the wrong person. So when I’m spending time with someone, I try to be with just that person. If a person isn’t willing enough to talk to you in the flesh then they can wait to be prioritized. But my date had a different mindset. I’m still clueless to who It was or why their conversation was more important than our night together, so I can admit to being a bit judgmental towards my date. But I stand my ground when I say anyone more attached to their phone than you is a waste of time.
Our new technology has really confused dating. Is texting someone continuously dating or is having actual human interaction dating? We get the same effects from both situations. Two people can learn about each other’s likes, dislikes, thoughts, looks, and bond over a virtual conversation just as much as you can in real life. Can you fall in love with the way they use a nose on their smiley faces or how fast they reply? Technology gives us the excuse to not go out of our way for people who we take interest in. It’s just as easy to ask, “Want to go out sometime?,” than it is to press send. That was why I was so impressed by my date, he actually took that extra step more than most boys do and asked me out. Yet he proved my theory right that technology has really damaged the dating world.
