For every 100 people in the UK, according to a recent survey, there are 110 mobile phones. And we are by no means the most over-mobiled—in Italy the figures are 123/100. What’s missing from the information before you do an imitation of the person on the bridge in The Scream is the even more frightening figure for the number of people in every 100 who do not own and use a mobile telephone. That really is a thought to send civilised folks screaming off to hide in a fold of the hills where mobile networks cannot reach.
Small wonder then that Britain is purported to be one of the noisiest places on earth. Not that I believe that particular statistic. It’s an observable notion however that no matter where or when you may look in our towns there will always be someone talking on the telephone. Not all of them are particularly noisy but some of them are, and all of them are noticeable to the extent almost of being objectionable.
When the phenomenon first appeared I used to smile sympathetically and say how sad it was that so many people had such sore ears that they needed to hold their hands to them. It wasn’t particularly funny then. It’s far from funny now.
I really don’t know if it’s a good or a bad thing. I like to have my phone with me when I’m out and about on my own. Should I get in trouble walking I can always call for help no matter where I may be. It’s convenient, too.
Like today, I was out doing my shopping early and came across some truly excellent croissants so I was able to phone home and check if Graham had fixed himself breakfast yet. The answer was no, so I picked up four of the scrumptious beauties and we enjoyed them greatly as a brunch to get your mouth watering. If I hadn’t been able to check so easily I’d have passed them by, like as not.
It does make you wonder, though, how we managed without. Not that it’s a particularly sensible kind of wondering. Might as well wonder what we did before computers and the Internet and that really would be a silly thing to do on the day when Microsoft Vista was released and sold more copies than there are Apples in the world. (All right, I made that statistic up, but I’ll bet it’s not far off the truth.)
Like it or not, technology is here to stay. It forms a very significant part of the fabric of our society, and of our economies. I find it comforting in a way that those who are most averse to it can take themselves off to a remote place, even here in Britain, and lead a completely self-sufficient life, divorced from all technology.
There was a time when I’d happily have done that. There have been a couple of times in my life when I’ve done something very close to it. Speaks to the romantic in me, I confess it.
Now, however, I’ll go with the crowd, live comfortably in my technologically advanced home and play with my technological toys. In particular, twice a day, I’ll set my 21st century partial denture to soak and give thanks for the advances in dental technology that provided it. Self-sufficiency is all very well, but it’s darned hard on the teeth.
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