Smartphone Addiction: Do you own the phone or is it the other way round?

It is the year 2020 and the human race has been enslaved by the machines. But instead of a self-aware artificial intelligence system like the Skynet, it is the simple smartphones that have taken over the world this time around. Sounds very Hollywoodish? If the results of a recent survey are anything to go by, then such a scenario is much closer to being a reality than a plot of a Sci-Fi film.

Countries like the UK, USA and South Korea are the first to have been affected. In a country like UK usage of smartphones have increased nearly 40-times in the past 2-3 years. Of the people surveyed about 37% of adults and a whopping 60% of teenagers admitted that they are highly addicted to their smartphone. In the US about one third of the population would rather give up sex for a week than a mobile phone and a shocking 70% were also willing to give up alcohol for their phone. The level of addiction in South Korea isn’t far behind either, with the country being the only place in the world where you will find rehab clinics for internet and smartphone addicts.

I for one am already a victim of these deadly smartphones. Besides lusting over most of the phones in the market, I’m unhealthily attached to my current phone. If you shadow me throughout the day, you will know what I mean! On an average I check my phone every 5 minutes. Besides calls and text messages, I check my mails, Facebook, Twitter and all the latest news on my phone. In the mornings even before I’m fully awake, the first thing I do is check my phone to see if I’ve received any emails or updates when I was asleep. I also enjoy reading the day’s news on my phone rather than on a newspaper. It has become such an important part of my life that I can’t imagine how I lived with a feature phone for so many years.

If this is what slavery means, I am afraid the smartphones’ plan of taking over the world is already working. Don’t trust me? Look at how many people stand in lines to be the first ones to get their hands on a new iPhone, or how the Nexus 4 sold out in less than 20 minutes after Google launched it last week. These are troubled signs people and it seems a war for survival is almost upon us!

A Nightmare before Christmas...The Real West

Snow wrecks havoc at London Heathrow

Christmas time this year was anything but happy for the people in the UK, as the country was brought down on its knees by Mother Nature. The time of the year when people travel, either to their families or abroad on a holiday, this time around had a sombre and forbidding look of a Tim Burton’s movie.

Contrary to the countless predictions of the Met Office there was heavy snowfall. It not only crippled the transport system of the country, but also the day-to-day life of the people. Cars were stuck in traffic jams, trains were delayed and the biggest airport in the UK was shut. Royal Mail couldn’t deliver letters or packages and there were massive delays in the Christmas gifts being delivered. There were no fresh foods in the malls as the trucks carrying fresh food products were stuck on the motorways. I had never before seen long empty rows in the malls where fresh bread, milk and other products should have been.

Journeys that generally took about 2-3 hours by road, now took more than 10 hours. All the trains leading in and out of London were cancelled or delayed. As London is the epicentre, the whole country grinded to a halt. People were queuing outside St. Pancras railway station to get a Eurorail train. At one point the queue was almost a mile long and the staffs at the station had to work hard to give the people food and provide shelter against the freezing cold. But the real chaos was at London Heathrow, where around 3000-5000 people were stranded outside the airport as all the flights were cancelled. Even though the authorities were warning people not to come to the airport, there was no stopping the people from coming in the hope that their flight might take off. The airport authorities had to provide food, drinks and blankets to the people and security also had to intervene when some of them got drunk and started shouting and swearing at the staffs. But the worst was saved for the Secretary of State for Transport Philip Hammond, as he had to face the wrath of the people. They complained about how such problems were happening every year and nothing was being done.

I was also one of those unlucky ones who got stuck at London because my flight was cancelled. But it was not my only problem. After the cancellation, I couldn’t get through to the airline as the phone lines were jammed. When I finally got through, all I could get out of them were apologies and sympathies, but no flight reservation. Now I have to wait for about 6-8 weeks to get a refund on my cancelled flight; so much for efficiency. I had like most Indians this idea of the West that everything is perfect there but I got to see the other side of the West we hardly know of and it isn’t pretty. 

Leaving Home..

It has been a week since I have ventured out my house, courtesy my cold. So having nothing to do on a Saturday evening, I was just staring at my computer screen, when I was suddenly transported back in time. I went back to around this time last year when I had begun working towards coming to the UK. It suddenly seems ages ago.

It's been over two and half months since I have been here in the UK and more importantly away from my parents. Being away from the protective cushion of our parents is not easy at all. The decision to leave home was never easy too. A lot of times I wasn't sure if I was made for it, if I would survive and so many more kind of doubts. But a friend gave me the courage and assured me that I would be able to and that everything was going to be alright. From that point onwards there was no looking back.

I looked for Universities, checked their ranks, researched on the kind of courses they offered, the fee structure, etc. I also had to look for the kind of scores they required from me, be it entrance test or class test scores. I spent so much time on the internet reading, asking strangers on the net or asking my friends who have already had a stint abroad. They were all really helpful. But what really surprised me and touched my heart, was how supportive my parents were of my decision. It was evident how tough it was for them to see me take steps away from them, but they never came in my way. They would listen patiently to me when I would excitedly come to them telling about what all I had found. Though they did not have any idea about the place that I would be going to, they completely trusted my judgments. When I got good scores in my graduation and entrance tests and managed to get into the University of Sheffield, my parents were as happy as anyone. They did a great job of hiding their fears and pain under the hood of happiness and pride.

Then the day of my departure started creeping ever so close and the process of leaving was in full swing. The last month went very quickly and suddenly it was time for me to leave. I am a person who hates goodbyes. So you can imagine my state when it is my parents that I had to say goodbye to. For the last few days before my departure, I had nightmares about the scene which was due to unfold at the airport. But I am grateful to my friends, for they got me late at reaching the airport. This meant that a long and painful farewell was cut short and all I had time was for a wave and a hasty round of goodbyes to my family and friends.

In the UK, it has been a new beginning. Be it living alone, doing chores, cooking, buying groceries or taking decisions on my own, it has been a totally new experience. Maybe it is a change or just a new challenge, but I am enjoying it a lot. I cherish every moment and am thankful for getting this opportunity. But the truth is that I can't wait to go back home. As was immortalized in the words of Robert Montgomery,

"Home, the spot of earth supremely blest,
A dearer, sweeter spot than all the rest."