The curse of the mobile phone

Recently I have found myself getting annoyed with the amount of time people (including myself) spend staring in to their mobile phone screen. So I am going to have a moan about it!

You wouldn't read a book or magazine in someone else's company so why is it now acceptable to scroll through your Twitter timeline when spending time with another person? I think it is rude and whilst I am 100% a culprit of spending too much time on my phone I like to think that I do not use it excessively when in someone else's company.

Don't get me wrong. If you've got to answer a call or reply to a text that isn't the end of the world. But I notice that this isn't the case. I spend time with plenty of people who ignore you in favour of social media/Whatsapp/Tinder/Vine. How sad is that? Are we all now so consumed with the quite frankly bullshit people post online (I know I do) that we lose perspective on life, spending less and less time interacting with actual human beings?! Now here is when I start to sound old (I turned 26 on Saturday) but it is a much bigger issue with younger people (I'm crying inside that I no longer count as one of them). A constant attachment to the end of their arm; it's like it would be the end of the world if they missed a tweet/status update/instagram post! And what does any of it matter?

This leads me on to my next rant.... social media embellishment! The thing is what people are obsessing over isn't even a true reflection of life. Take my sister for example (sorry Samantha) but she is one of the worst for this. She has been travelling for the past who knows how long and when she's off 'gallavanting' e.g. sky diving, bungee jumping, trekking, partying you cannot get away from her on social media. Recently however, it has been quiet - no action in comparison. And the reason why? She's got  a job because she ran out of money - it's not glamorous so we don't get it plastered over social media. But she is doing what she needs to to get to the next part of her trip - so  fair play.

Anyway back to mobile phones... I think it reflects the pace we live life at today. I mean if you don't look at Twitter for a day you've potentially missed 500 million tweets (that's how many are sent a day!). Imagine what you'd miss in an hour - still a huge amount. Breaking news, celebrity beef, sports results, music announcements, competitions, scientific breakthroughs, pertinent research findings! They are all being announced more and more via Twitter. I often claim that everything I know about 'what is happening in the World' is via Twitter and I am not lying; I don't watch the news or read newspapers. I get it. It is incredible what a platform social media can be.

BUT DON'T PERSISTENTLY USE IT IN THE PRESENCE OF ACTUAL HUMAN BEINGS.

One of my biggest hates is online videos. Think Vine or Facebook. Where does the need come from that requires someone to catch up on the videos from the day? They do not (in the most part) educate, inform or affect someone for the better. They are entertaining (to a certain audience), yes. But oh my word what a waste of time! Why not spend some time engaging with the person sat next to you? Oh wait it's your girl/boyfriend, even 'just' a friend, or your mum, sister? Well I am sure they would appreciate some interaction because that's what we thrive on. There is always a lot of chat about whether or not the art of conversation is a lost art; I believe so. Not in the sense of 'why don't we all chat on the tube instead of staring at our phones' but in terms of being able to sit around a table or on a sofa and hold an engaging conversation.

You see it the most in children; sadly I see it in my younger brothers. No longer out 'playing', climbing trees or pretending to be horses (yes I was a weird kid), kids sit engrossed in a screen not talking to one another (if there is even anyone there). I'm sounding old again but I don't care. Child obesity is a MASSIVE (excuse the pun) issue. And it is not all about the price of fruit and veg because I ate a lot of crap as a kid as I was stick thin, my knees the biggest part of my legs! But I played everyday - out and about not sat on my bottom. I also chatted with my friends about boys, sex, worries, school etc. rather than turning to my phone for answers. We grew up together. A far healthier way to grow up wouldn't you agree?

Could this be why depression, stress or anxiety is on the rise? Probably not - there are bigger issues in the World today that affect mental health but can it be healthy to constantly feel the need to appear better than you are on social media? Or feel that your life is inferior compared to Mrs. next door who has put her cruise pictures online whilst you worry about paying the next electricity bill. And how about the husband/wife that sits on their phone instead of cooking you a meal or chatting about a TV show that it on? How does that foster a happy marriage? In my opinion it cannot. Probably the opposite - sexting anyone? Jealousy, resentment, anger can fester from the smallest things.
Wow what a tangent.

Technology is scary. And it will continue to grow at an exponential rate; we cannot do anything about it. And to be honest I don't think we should - it is an amazing thing. Imagine the iPhone not existing? What would you do if lost with no one to help? You can check the weather or Google at the smallest touch, run your calendar and emails without a laptop/diary or catch up on that X factor performance you missed at the weekend. It is convenience and it is ok. I just think we need to remember (and in all aspects of life) that people are what matter. Real, tangible people that we can touch, love and share experiences with. That cannot and does not compare to anything on social media. I mean without people what pictures would we insta? Who would we tweet? We've just got to not lose sight of the people in life. I tweeted probably a thousand times over the weekend. It was my birthday and I'd been excited about it so naturally I expressed this on social media. But at the centre of my excitement and what I was expressing was the occasion that meant I was seeing ALOT of my favorite people, some of whom I do not always see very often. People matter. And I had a great weekend spending time with them (as you can see on SM!).

So if you're reading this on your phone or tablet right now put it down (I won't be offended) and ask the person next to you how they are, how their day has been, or what they think about the Geordie Shore episode that is currently on TV!

And next time you're out to dinner put the phones in a pile on the table. First one to reach out pays the bill!