Irritation

Those free apps on the new ITouch?  Came to $24.83.  Which sweet boy doesn't have.  And Momma refuses to cover.

Oh how I have a bittersweet relationship with technology.  My new smart phone (thank you, I've already been welcomed into the 2000s) is quite possibly the coolest thing since sliced bread.  BUT, it is also a clanging gong, the likes of which the Bible knew well before Steve Jobs was even a flicker in his great-great-great-great Granpappy's mind.

I hate, yet love, that people have instant access to me.  It causes me, at times, to wonder if people know I know they called but I can't get to them.  Which, sometimes, makes me apologize for not being more accessible when I finally DO find the time to call or text or message back.  And, I don't think that is healthy for me or anyone else.

There was a day, not so long ago, where you would have to run a mile to have access to the farmer in the field.  Where you didn't know where your kids were a majority of the day, until they showed up for dinner.  A time when it was exciting to dial long-distance and chat until the timer went off and you had to hang up because the budget depended on it.

Gone are those days.  The farmer is in constant contact via computers in his tractor and cell phone.  Every kid we know, starting at about age 8, has access to a cell phone, either his or someone he knows, even though our children are never left anywhere that security isn't pretty tight.  And long-distance is just no big deal given that we have unlimited plans for just about anywhere on planet Earth.

All this makes me think about origins.  More specifically, is this something God really wants for all of us or is this another of the Devil's schemes?  Certainly, technology, such as the computer I am typing this on, can be used for kingdom purposes.  But, it can also be used for plenty of evil.

Is all our distraction with technology keeping us from developing relationships with one another?  Is it making our voices louder but our opinions shallower because we can remain relatively anonymous in our diatribes?  Are we spending precious little time at the feet of God, in His word, and in prayer, all in the name of latest and greatest technological advances that make life "easier and better"?

It certainly seems our attention spans have become shorter because the next generation of anything that has circuitry is always right around the corner.  The next phone, app, gaming system.  We don't seem to stay satisfied with last year's model once this year's has hit the market.  And, in some cases, we will stop at almost nothing to get what we want.

Something to ponder.

It isn't surprising to me, with this new generation of gadgetry, that there are growing pains for those of us in our forties.  I just wonder what growing pains our kids will endure.

Will they enjoy telephone circuitry implanted in ear canals and wish for a time when they actually had to pick up a phone and place in to their ear? 

Will they wear specialized cornea implants that allow access to the Internet 24/7?

Where will this all stop?  And, will we have the common sense to say "enough is enough"?

I guess, for me, this is all a little Orwellian.  I pine for the days when I would tie up the phone talking to my boyfriend for hours on end and create a busy signal.  And for unfettered days on my bike, hopping from friends houses like a grasshopper with no real purpose other than just to be with other kids. 

But, for now, I have to figure out how to further block access so no more of those free apps manage to make it onto my credit card bill.