When I was talking with my friend Jody the other day, we were standing outside when I noticed a woman (err young lady) walking by. Looking straight ahead with a face of non-emotion, I initially thought "How rude!" But upon further examination, which it was not difficult to notice, there were the atypical bright white wires coming down from her ear canals. Yes, she was listening to something. Maybe it was music, or a podcast, or a recorded lecture. Who knows what she was listening to, but I immediately told Jody how that really annoys the hell out of me.
I remember the days when I was at college for my undergraduate work and when students would go from class to class, it was really nice to say "hello" or "hi" to other human beings. But what is disturbing is the isolation which is being created in our society and right here in Austin, Texas. I support my claim of the creation of isolation amongst people in public settings when I go to local coffee shops. I challenge you to observe this phenomenon as well next time you are drinking your $6 cup of coffee. You will see people with white or black wires dangling from their ear canals in addition to their laptop computers sitting in front of them acting as a "leave me alone" barrier. But the best way to tell someone, "Don't talk to me" or "I want to be alone" are the good old earbuds or headphones for those of you who are not so tech savvy.
After I was done talking with Jody, I was driving in my car and counted 25 people in the span of a 45 second car ride who had headphones in as they were walking. Wow! I was amazed while at the same time frustrated that technology is beginning to isolate us in our local community. It's really easy to stay "connected" via Facebook, Skype, IM, texting, etc. but what in the hell ever happened to actually talking to someone in person or over the phone. I mean come on people!
And then...
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