Okay, it's about time some sort of iPhone manifesto gets written. Yes, as I have been telling people around me, I have "crossed over to the dark side" and become an official iPhone owner. For months Paul has been nudging, encouraging, suggesting, offering, and harassing me about getting iPhones. I was very resistant for a long while, happy with my antiquated cell phone, mainly because I didn't feel the need or sense the advantage of being more "in touch". In fact I thought it wouldn't help me be more mindful, and might further worsen my multi-tasking tendencies. But at last, I gave in, figuring it's gotta happen some day, and while I am wearing the hat of a social media researcher at work, it may as well be some sort of an ethnography and self study, just to see if and how this little thing may change my life and my communication pattern. And since August 1, I've been introduced to the fantastic world of Apps!! And so far, I have noticed the following changes:
--Because of the iPhones, we've been able to move our Mac to the upstairs "office"/guest room. This is a welcome change as now if one of us needs to do some work, he/she can have some peace and quiet away from the kids.
--Traveling light has become easier. I am already a very light packer, and now I don't even need to bring a laptop when I go to conferences. However, during a recent trip to Atlanta, I wished that I had brought my old Mac iBook because trying to type more than one or two sentences was truly a test of patience and finger strength and agility, at least for a novice user like me.
--Wasting time looking for information that you don't really need. I've found myself reading reviews of restaurants on Urbanspoon or browsing my emails, activities that the pre-iPhone me would not engage in. I can't tell yet how much time that has taken up, and whether the alternative activities or lack of activities may be slightly more meaningful or wholesome.
--I have been making a point to observe my interactions with my iPhone: asking myself "do I need to check this?" "Why am I checking that?" Sometimes though, it's much easier to just turn it on mindlessly and be totally reactive to whatever information surfaces in this process.
Now, we are spending the week on Santa Rosa Beach in Destin, Florida, enjoying family time and lots of water/beach fun, while feeling completely accessible and "in touch", like it or not. While it doesn't feel either good or bad, I know that there's no easy way of turning back.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment