IPODs and cell phones will be the downfall of society. I'm serious. It's starting right here at Vanderbilt. I have never encountered such a strange series of human interactions (or lack thereof) since I came to campus. Here's how it all went down:
Walking back from the REC (yes, we all know it's a long walk) I left the building at the exact same timeas another guy. We walked down the sidewalk next to each other without sayinga word. Then we took separate paths, negotiating cars in the parking lot then ultimately ended up walking next to each other again. ::I dare not look at him:: Then I fumble with my cell phone -- as does he. We're both striving for some type of human interaction, but we're too stupid to shake hands and say hello for fear of "entering someone else's bubble." After about 5 minutes of this, I finally had wrestled with the idea of speaking to him enough that I introduced myself. I haven't seen him again norcould I tell you his name or what he looks like, but it was nice actually interacting with another student like myself. You see, we both wanted to do something besides walk silently for a mile, but we were too embarrassed to say hello.
This is also demonstrated by the number of people who live their lives with a constant soundtrack. IPODs are ruining avenues for social interaction. Walking to and from class, students are immersed in their own world ... walking like zombies afraid to make eye contact or say good morning to another student. It's just weird, man. I generally say good morning/afternoon/etc. to anyone I pass walking to class. I don't know if it startles people or something, but rarely does anyone say anthing back. Most of the time, people look away as quick as possible or are too busy talking on their cell phones. With this said, I own both a cell phone and an IPOD. I catch myself falling into the same situations, BUT IT MUST END HERE!
Remember when Mom said don't talk to strangers' Well, she wasn't talking about other students walking to class in the middle of the afternoon. I can totally understand if it's 1 a.m. and some random guy starts walking next to a Vandy girl and asking how she's doing --that would be creepy. BUT -- If you're both walking headed to Rand, It's perfectly ok to flash a smile and ask someone how their day is going.
Lots of folks picked this school for "connections" later in life (don't deny it, you know you did,) then why are we so afraid to "connect" while we're here' So... Good morning, Nice to meet you - My name's Rob. What's yours'
