Last Sunday morning my sister and I went to one of my favorite places in Denver.

The Farmer’s Market.

But really, if you live in the Denver area and haven’t checked out the Pearl Street Farmer’s Market downtown, you’re missing out.

My personal favorite is the booth that allows you to fill up a huge bag of produce for only $10, but there’s something for everyone.

But that is beside the point.

As I was at the Farmer’s Market, having a wonderful time and enjoying the fresh food, cool people, and warm sun, I noticed something.

Everyone was on their phones and more than normal. I’m used to walking around places and seeing people on their phones, something I don’t love in the first place—but this was different.

These people were walking around, not paying attention, and completely missing the point of the Farmer’s Market.

As I looked over at my sister, she was doing the same thing (sorry to throw you under the bus). I immediately asked her what in the world was going on, wondering exactly what I was missing.

She answered excitedly: “There’s a Pikachu here!”

From that moment, I knew, we had a serious problem.

Don’t get me wrong, there are good things about Pokemon Go. As far as a video game goes, it’s pretty innocent and it does encourage people to get up and be active, which is something I believe our country truly needs.

However, it’s no secret that people today spend an absurd amount of time on our phones. I’m surprised half of us don’t have a permanent crick in our neck from looking at our precious phones.

Honestly, the last thing we needed was a video game that specifically encourages the younger generations to walk around, not paying attention, and collect (sorry) meaningless tokens.

But, that’s exactly what Pokemon Go has done.

Now, we do have people being active (a great thing!) but they are missing the point of being active.

Being active should be something that allows you to feel refreshed and reset. It allows you to enjoy nature and fresh air if you’re outside, and no matter where you exercise, you reap the benefits of endorphins.

Now, instead of appreciating the act of exercise, we are still attached to our phones instead of actually actively participating in the exercise.

But not only that, people have stopped paying attention. Looking at your phone while in public makes you more susceptible to harm. Instead of paying attention to what’s going on around us, our noses are pressed to our phones, and we have no idea what could be taking place.

This is not only unsafe but in my opinion—

Annoying.

I went to the Farmer’s Market to be at the Farmer’s Market. I went to be in that moment and enjoy what was around me. I didn’t go to be on my phone.

And honestly, I think that moments are much more valuable than any Pikachu could ever be.