laziness

I was just reading this piece on medium called “your brain on mobile” on my mobile. there was this section about appointments and it reminded me about something that someone told me a few days back. it was something similar to what was written in the piece.

She (which she? it doesn’t matter) was talking about how technology had changed the way she went to the market with her aunt (not the supermarket, a wet market - do you even know what this is?). in the past, before the advent of technology and mobile phones, she would make an appointment with her aunt, who lives one floor below her flat, by walking downstairs and talking to her face to face, the night before. Say the time fixed was 8.00am. The following morning, she would most likely be on time. her aunt would be too.

However, given the pervasiveness of mobile phones, a trip to the market with her aunt has never been as simple as before. if she were to fix a time, say 8.00am (and probably no longer by talking face to face, instead through texting), she would probably be on time, waiting for her aunt at the void deck. however, the chances of her aunt sending her a text message saying “i just woke up” at 8.10am (and, obviously, being late) is significantly higher.

when i first listened to this anecdote. i did not think too much of it. but because i read the piece on medium, i recalled this anecdote and it resonated with me because of this one thing: Appointments become moving targets. Mobile phones and technology have changed the way we interact with people. We know that. But it has made us lazier people. Literally. Feel like waking up later? Just send a message saying “sorry ill be late”. your friend technically can’t blame you for not informing him/her, because “i sms-ed you what.” your friend could have, theoretically, instead of sitting there waiting, gone hiking or kayaked around the pacific during that half an hour which you were late, because you informed him/her. thus, since your friend would have been informed in advance (through text), the act of being late becomes seemingly justified.

Technology has provided adequate justification for our laziness and lack of punctuality.