I LOVE ELLEN,
BUT THE IDEA OF LIVING WITHOUT PHONE IS LOVELIER.
Ed said, that it was less stress because he doesn’ t have to check his phone and trying to answer 50 messages every morning.
Let me just put it, the idea of being able to let go and having a life without being bothered by 500 messages a day, well that is just really...that is a lux!
At some point of my life I realized how pressured it was to handle messages and stress that I got from using social media and messenger apps like LINE especially when your device wasn’t that supporting.
One time, I was having a chat with my american best friend, Nicole about her visit to Shanghai, China. Out of my curiousity I asked her, “ What is the thing that you find different and you never see before?” Nicole answer “Well, here everybody used their phone all the time. When they walk, and even eating”
Then she told the story when she had lunch with some middle school sudents there. They all sat in the same table and enjoying their lunch, and while eating Nicole’s phone rang a sign that new message came in. Nicole just look at her phone and got back to her food again. When she kept eating she realized that the other kids looked curious and confuse at her, they then asked “You get a message, why don’t you reply it?” Now Nicole is the one who confused, she said “Well I am eating, and I can reply it later”
I was reflecting when Nicole told that, and I replied to her that it’s also happened in Indonesia. So I screened shoot my LINE chat, to show her that I get at least 500 messages a day. She was in shocked because that was so much. I admited it to her, that it was overwhelmed sometimes.
At that point I realize, It’s actually overwhelming to handle such amount of messages. But we as a community don't have any other choice, since everybody using it, and if we decided not using the app, and responding to those messages quickly we will be left behind. We couldn't track information and we may loose opportunity, more over it may influence our image in others people eyes that we “the slow responds one”
This is one of the indication that shown by Technological Determinism Theory that new technology supersedes the predecessor. Which caused when we are not adapting and following the technology we will be left and unable to connect with others. We couldn’t socialize, and you realize it right that having a phone installed with messenger app is our way to socialize.
Well, sadly I am not as powerful as Ed Sheeran to just throw away my phone and saying good bye to 500 messages. ...Wait that is the indication of tech determinism, isn't it? How about you?
-Jaya Wina Santiya (1506686040)