quantum leap

This is old news to some. But exciting news, never fear.

A while back, I got a new cell phone. To say that this was a way-past-due purchase would be an understatement. That poor old phone. Oh my. The tired, old, decrepit thing would fall to pieces when touched. Every edifice was caked with mustard. Half the buttons didn’t work. It was a less than ideal situation when dealing with the majority of the general public … that has embraced the 21st century with open arms. True. It fulfilled its purpose. Of which I’m grateful. But it was right around the corner from sputtering its last breath. Seriously.

So, a new phone was purchased. With all kinds of goodies. For instance, I can now dial numbers without feeling the urge to scream expletives at the top of my lungs. I can now receive and send text messages. I can check my email. Yada Yada Yada. Big deals for me. I wonder how I ever lived before these ... ah ... modern conveniences. Before texting … where I can more or less guarantee daytime communication with my husband. The ability to get online while on the go has proved more beneficial than I had ever dreamed. Yes, I was that person that said I would never have a use for it. But, astonishingly, I have been saved – miraculously – time and time again from near-disasters. Simply because of these new treasures. I have realized, again, that modern technology is a wonderful thing. And, in realistic moderation, should be embraced. I have also realized that because of these things, I can be reached anywhere, any time … all. the. time.

And that is a two-edged sword. That stabs my heart frequently.

I’m reminded, of course, of a Seinfeld moment. A stand-up monologue that includes:

“I would say the concept behind the car phone, and the phone machine, the speaker phone, the airline phone, the portable phone, the pay phone, the cordless phone, the multi-line phone, the phone pager, the call waiting, the call forwarding, call conferencing, speed dialing, direct dialing, and the redialing … is that we all have absolutely nothing to say, and we've got to talk to someone about it right now. Cannot wait another second! I mean come on, you're at home and you're on the phone; you're in the car and you're makin' calls; you get to work, "Any messages for me?" You've got to give people a chance to miss you a little!”

Yes … this statement was made in the heighday of the 90s … and things have changed drastically since then. Heck … things have changed drastically since I was young. And I’m not that old. I remember things that would make my technology-savvy child palpitate.

I will never be without my phone. I just won’t. Unless I loose all sanity – which may happen, you never know – and just forget it. My fear of being stranded someplace or the development of an emergency situation – either involving me or someone else – is thanked for that. So … I can’t easily ‘turn my phone off’ and ‘get away from it all’. Yes … I do sometimes shudder when I hear the phone ring. Or hear the ‘bleep’, as I call it, when I receive a text message. Because, yes, I have noticed a difference. A difference in the amount of communication that comes in and out.

I’m really not complaining. I don’t really mind. Because I do appreciate the added connection to the outside world and the ones I love. But I have been reminded – and rechallenged myself – that priorities are important. Technology is grand – and vital. But so are other things. Like quiet moments. Without realistic moderation … our priorities can easily shift and crumble.

Sometimes, it pays to just let the phone ring. And the ‘bleep’, bleep. And I can do that. And still embrace technology. That’s why its home is a celery green Kate Spade case. See … I do care, after all. Just a little bit.