Like, you just look weird if you sitting by yourself (example: waiting at a bus stop) and just stairing into space, so like its basically social expectation to be on your phone when you are by yourself.
Plus, just feels like if you don’t have a phone on you, you are missing a lot of information (access to the internet, maps, etc.) that you might need in case you get lost or something.
I don’t even know how I survived the 90s. When you were waiting for the bus the most entertaining thing you could do was stare at your shoes or throw a rock at the stop sign
I would run out of ads to stare at and then just space out.
A Walkman or book
Or a handheld… Those ones still exist… Thankfully.
Even nowadays I don’t feel “entertained” when forcing myself to use the smartphone when I am in waiting situation outside…
How could I have forgotten gameboy
I pretty much always have a handheld with me. I have this fear that I’ll randomly get forcibly stuck somewhere for half an hour and will need to bust it out. Usually it’s my R36S, but sometimes it’s a Vita, or a PSP 1000. If I’m feeling especially nostalgic, a modded Gameboy Color.
They come in super handy at lunch, grocery store lines, and when my kid falls asleep on me.
You had to pick up rocks on the way in case there weren’t any good ones at the bus stop. Or you’d have to ask people there if they had any spare rocks. So embarrassing.
The boredom was real, but also like…thoughts would turn over in undirected and sometimes fruitful ways, too. At least for me. My mind does far less just “idling” these days, and while too much of that is a real kind of misery, I think some is probably useful.
When I have idle time for thoughts to enter my brain is when bad things happen.
Heard lol, it’s not a universal good
I feel weird if I’m taking a shit and I don’t have my phone with me, forget about leaving the house without it.
Time to study air freshener first aid.
I do not. I don’t feel awkward necessarily just sitting there doing nothing but I also tend to avoid situations where I am like that because I do get bored and impatient fairly easily. I also just don’t like phones. I don’t do much with mine other than the things I find very useful like calls, text messaging and maps. I much prefer my PC whenever possible.
I’m American, and I’m 40. I didn’t have a mobile phone until I was like 19 and didn’t have a smartphone until I was probably about 28 or something.
I understand why people would feel awkward without their phones for sure. Especially if that’s what they are used to. I used to smoke cigarettes and I remember kinda feeling silly just standing there not smoking after I quit.
No. I usually read books anyway, and i tend to forget my phone very often. So nothing unusual.
I’m 50, old enough to remember when we didn’t have answering machines or call waiting or anything, and yet I can’t go to the kitchen to stir my tea without my phone. I’m not saying it’s good. To be fair I do read a lot of books on it though.
Not really, but I’m old. I grew up in the '80s and '90s. I still prefer not to forget my cell, mostly because there’s no payphones anymore.
Not really. The only thing I’d be missing access to is where I am on my finances when shopping and I don’t have it.
Yeah but only because I have literally no personality and will stare blankly in space (and 9 times out of 10, in the direction of some random person) and I’m only worried about not blending in enough without starting stupid fights. I wasn’t listening to your stupid conversation, I was completely zoned out but okay. It was probably a really stupid conversation about stupid marijuana products and brand names and “attractive” men who look like personified dead rats or something stupid I wasn’t even interested in.
I’d end up staring at people while I drink my coffee without my phone.
I was on the metro recently and didnt feel like using my phone. tried to zone out into space but kept feeling like people were looking at me funny, noticing I wasn’t looking down at a phone. made me feel so u comfortable I took my phone out and forced myself to use it for the next 20 mins
feeling like people were looking at me funny, noticing I wasn’t looking down at a phone
Lmfao, this is exactly what I was taking about
Whereas my response to that situation is to want to do anything but that. Who wants to be just another sheep squinting zombielike at a screen?? I will never get it.
its basically social expectation to be on your phone when you are by yourself.
Books and newspapers are not forbidden (yet?)
No. It’s not hard to entertain myself by simply observing the world around me and daydreaming.
I feel weird and anxious when I go outside even if I do have my phone with me.
Ooposite, i feel weird and unreal when I have a phone, like I’m not human, just bound to this box and that’s all I am, no me. also I’m embarrassed using my phone in public, because it is embarrassing and when I see people doing it my respect sinks by 70%.
My pockets feel unusual. Same when going out without a wallet. Constantly feel like I left them somewhere.
