Lady Geek

I was sitting in a restaurant and I felt agitated.  Nervous.  Jittery.  Stressed.  It took me a while to figure out what was wrong.  And then I realised.  I hadn’t checked my emails for over 30 minutes.  I looked around at the table next to mine – half of it’s occupants were staring into their smart-phones or tablet PC’s.

Admittedly we were a geeky crowd but this was a fancy French restaurant in an upscale part of the city, not some a nerd-fest in a seattle coffe bar. As Hamlesh noted, the Crack berry has replaced smoking.  Whilst it was once considered OK to smoke, now its not. It is acceptable however, to check your Blackberry every five minutes.   If they remade Mad Men for today’s advertising world, would they be checking their phone for emails rather than lighting up another cigarette?

Have we become so dependent on technology that it is no longer an empower and enabler but the root of an addiction society?  A replacement for the cigarette?

One of my Lady Geek contacts admitted to me that she checks her Blackberry at traffic lights.  Another told me what without her phone she feels like there is no oxygen in the room.  Another wakes up and has to check Facebook before she has her breakfast.  I have to admit I check my phone every half an hour when I am with my children, which I feel guilty about.   According to a recent You Gov poll, 90% of Blackberry users describe their Blackberry is a lifesaver.   Technology is a lifeline for many of us and brings many benefits..it connects us to our friends and families and many women talk about their phone as the modern day rape alarm.  Its a security device.  The reality is that if someone is to attack you then your phone is not going to be of any use.  But it provides many women with reassurance and peace of mind.

But not being able to live without technology, is that really good for society?  I remember that scene from Sex in the City when Miranda comes home and Tivo hasn’t recorded her favourite programmes and she behaves like a demented neurotic.  I feel like that when my PVR doesn’t record “The Apprentice”.

Surely ‘balance’ in all aspects of our lives is what we should be striving for?  And if we are always ‘connected’ how do we switch off?   We need to make sure technology serves as an enabler, as a facilitator to someone or something we love doing.   Now let me just go and check my mail….