THE 21ST CENTURY PHONE CRISIS

OVER THE COURSE of the weekend, I saw something and I didn't like it. It was like a bad scene out of Sims the computer game. A bunch of friends were sitting around this table, every single one of them had their phones out. They were all too concerned with snapchatting the current event to other people who weren't there. Someone was checking in on Facebook, someone was off Instagraming, and someone began writing a clever tweet.
I raise my hand and confess, I'm guilty of it too; I'm actually one of the worst ones out there. I mean people like me are people who nearly have a heart attack if I can't get service because how in the world am I going to post this Instagram photo that I just spent too much time picking the perfect hashtag and filter for?
I'm tired of text messages.
I'm tired of getting snaps.
I'm tired of having directions at my finger tips.
I'm tired of trying to get to know people through Facebook photos and status updates.
I'm tired of copying, cutting, and pasting my feelings so that they can fit into 160 characters or less.
I'm tired of tweeting my thoughts, instead of sharing them with the person right next to me.
I'm tired of being with my friends, all too distracted with either trying to make an impression on their "followers" or obsessing over people who aren't even in front of them, people who they might not ever meet in real life.
I'm tired of going on afternoon runs and passing people with buried faces in their phones to notice the way the sun is hitting the mountains just right.
I want to get out of this 21st century smart phone dependancy.

My wheels in my head started turning, I began thinking, when was the last time I didn't bring my iPhone somewhere, when was the last time I spent my free time reading a good book instead of scrolling through my Twitter feed, when was the last time I really disconnected from technology and really connected with my real tangible life.
When was the last time you turned your phone off and just went for a drive into the mountains? When was the last time you wrote a handwritten thank you note instead of just shooting a quick text?
When was the last time you called someone to see how their day was?
When was the last time you just found a restaurant on the side of the road, walked in, and ate without checking its reviews?
Or better yet, when was the time time you went to that new place without Instagraming your meal?
When was the last time you fell in love with someone without the use of technology?
When was the last time you made it through an entire day without interrupting a conversation with a quick text to so and so, the justification of "let me just check to see if anyone has favorited that photo I posted"and the sound of an incoming notification on one of your 10+  social media apps?
Well I can tell you, this whole phone age is one of addiction. We're addicted to our phones, and the beautiful yet destructive virtual lives we lead through witty tweets, texts, and glamorous photos.

I'm tired of it.
I'm tired of guys texting me out.
I'm tired of feeling like my life is rated + measured by "likes" and "comments"
So, instead of just complaining about it, I did something about it. I deleted every single app from my iPhone + even went the extreme of deactivating my Twitter and my Snapchat. Maybe some of you reading this are thinking, "This girl is bat crazy, how will she ever get from one place to another, how will she ever keep in touch" you know what, I don't know, maybe I am crazy, but something that I do know is I'm tired of technology running and ruining my life. I'm tired of not being able to get lost. I'm tired of working out problems or plans through iMessage instead of having a conversation face to face. I'm tired of reading "haha" instead of hearing all the unique inflections and intonations that make me want to laugh too. I'm tired of waiting for my friends to pop up on my screen instead of stopping by my apartment. I'm tired of "favoriting" and "following" being considered the same as keeping in touch. I'm tired of smart phones trying to make me so connected, when really, I'm not connected at all.