One of our time's great sociological questions is why we filled downtime back up with work, and the reason is it's better than alcoholism. ... [The] standard criticism of social media and texting is backwards: it doesn't detract from real life relationships, it represents a much desired break from them. Having to be with someone, especially someone you're not having sex with, especially someone you're not having sex with anymore, is very, very hard; having people see you, especially when you're not amidst the symbols that you believe form your 'real' identity-- say, a hedge fund trader who has to be home with the kids or a pretty girl in a sweats at a supermarket -- this is a kind of exposure far more embarrassing than any selfie. What if they confuse that as the real you? You can see a version of this in married couples who talk to each other, joke, eat, raise kids, do couples stuff, but don't make eye contact. Avoiding eye contact is a way of keeping reserved a part of yourself, to yourself. 'I'm here,' you whisper to yourself, 'but I'm not going to let this all overtake me, I'm more than this.' This message is strictly internal, after all, you may not be looking at them but they can still see you.
The Last Psychiatrist http://thelastpsychiatrist.com/2014/01/randi_zuckerberg.html