As mentioned briefly in my other post The before time, I want to talk about mobile phones. I have never been a fan of telephones, as an invention, yes, it is fantastic. For personal use, no. I do not like talking on the phone, for a couple of reasons. Firstly, I don’t like my phone voice so it makes me uncomfortable the longer the conversation usually goes on. And secondly, I cannot see the persons face, so I find it hard to engage for very long. I can imagine them, but it’s not the same. Facetime suits me better if I have to.

It started with landlines though, before they were just used for the internet. I hated ours. I hated the unpredictability of when it would ring. A shrill noise to cut through your thoughts. A doorbell has the same effect. And an alarm clock when set. I also have neither of those in my life. To me it was the intrusion into what you were doing, as well as suddenly having to muster the energy or want to talk to someone. Going in blind to a conversation with potentially a complete stranger.

So fast forward to mobile phones. They designed something so that you could be reached by anyone with your number, all hours of the day. Great for business or if you need to be reachable. Other than that, it became a burden to me very quickly, and I suspect other people too, a source of anxiety and stress. Until one day, after having quite severe anxiety issues because of being called and texted every day by the same person, I decided to take control of it and not let my phone or someone else influence my moods too much. It was simple. I switched off the ringer. Silent. And it has remained that way for over 10 years now. I also run a business and it was one of the best things I could do for it. I stopped getting interrupted, was still contactable, just not at the convenience of other people. I was available at my own convenience. I worked out the root of my issues, identified them and took steps to sort them out.

As the years have gone on it has changed even further. Smart phones now instead of just mobile, suddenly it wasn’t just a phone, it was a mobile computer. You could play games, communicate, run your business, shop, watch TV and engage with multiple things at once. An awful saying/joke emerged which made me sad – “What is the fuzzy bit round the edge of the screen? Real life!” And then apparently laughter follows. But not for me, not for that. My humour towards the destruction of human interaction and qualities is limited, I see it as a bad thing if it is your only reference point for life and people. They have now been with us for a couple of decades, so time has told, and people do not seem happier for it. I find it odd how in a time of information, we seem to know less than we ever did. And in an age of unlimited communication, we have never felt so far apart.

(c) K Wicks