It is fascinating to me to observe the impact of technology on face0to-face society.
Last month, while waiting for friends to arrive for brunch at the Arte Cafe on the Upper West Side , I watched this poor (adorable!) guy struggle when his date pulled out all of her communication devices. Cell. Blackberry. Iphone.
Then they played this game. He was attentive, animated, warm and friendly. She was distracted, didn't look him in the eye, and immediately began answering urgent text messages pretty much every time he opened his mouth to talk. He really looked like a nice, good guy--hell, I wanted to go out with him!--and I was fascinated at his pained expressions--and at how struggled to suppress his frustration with her outrageously rude behavior. This gal must be great in bed, I thought, because she sure as hell isn't a fun date.
So back to the game. He'd open his mouth, she'd grab a device and start clicking away, he'd throw up his hands, she'd say, "just wait," and he would, quietly, then she would put down the device and then - they'd start the game all over again.
At one point, during his time to be quiet and wait, he caught me observing them and shrugged. We had this unspoken communication that said, "what the F is up with this dingbat girl?" I think he was grateful that someone else was seeing it, too. She was so clueless to how incredibly rude her behavior was.
Fascinating. "Social networking."
