“Sorry for keeping you waiting.
I left my cell phone at home,
so I went back to get it,”
Adam apologized to Vicky after arriving forty minutes late for his first date with her.
Trying to be polite, Vicky forced a smile and said,
“It’s all right. Let’s order something to eat.”
As they waited for their food to be served,
Vicky found that Adam had been checking his cell phone and sending text messages.
Before she could ask him what was going on,
Adam’s cell phone rang, and he answered it immediately.
It seemed that Adam was more interested in having a conversation with the person on the phone—
he talked endlessly and laughed loudly as if Vicky,
who was sitting right in front of him, were invisible.
Fifteen minutes later,
when Adam finally hung up and turned back to Vicky,
he saw nothing but a furious face.
“Why don’t you date your cell phone?” Vicky raged and stood up,
“Don’t ever call me again!”
Apparently, Vicky was not happy that Adam was so preoccupied with talking to his friends and checking his messages.
She felt ignored and
believed that Adam was more attached to his cell phone
than he was to her.
In fact, Adam’s relationship to his cell phone is similar to the relationship that many of us in modern society have with our cell phones.
We talk to others, listen to music, check e-mail, and download information with our cell phones.
Our dependence on cell phones has made this product gradually become a necessity rather than a luxury.
Even some elementary school students cannot imagine life without their cell phones.
As a result, the psychological term “disconnect anxiety” has emerged.
People affected by disconnect anxiety, according to psychologists, may feel anxious or depressed when they are not using their phones.
Some feel socially isolated when they can’t get access to their cell phone contacts.
Some worry about not being able to respond to emergencies quickly and efficiently enough.
Others are so psychologically dominated by their cell phones that they believe their phones have been ringing without their knowledge.
People who suffer from disconnect anxiety often check their cell phones for any missed calls or messages.
Additionally, they would keep calling or sending text messages to their contact—seven just to kill time.
This technological device becomes so important to these cell phone users that they believe they can’t afford to live without it.
Therefore, if they discover that they have forgotten to bring their cell phones along with them, they will insist on returning home to get their “cells.”
It’s nice to have a cell phone, and it makes sense, of course, to enjoy the advantages that this product has given to us.
However, we need to use it wisely—as those sensible psychologists advise us to do.
When doing something important, we can turn off our cell phones to concentrate on our work or simply enjoy the moment.
As for Adam, we suggest that he leave his cell phone at home on his next date with Vicky—if he gets another chance!