After breakfast this morning, the husband saw me scrolling through my newsfeed and asked, “what did you do before your smartphone?”
I laughed and kept quiet.
Not because I didn’t have an answer (I usually always have an answer), I was trying to give him some peace and quiet as he went about his morning business and prepared to study.
The truth is, I do use my smartphone quite a bit but it suits my lifestyle. We don’t have a car, so it’s how I pass the time on public transit. When I don’t have time to blog, email, tweet or post from my desktop, I use my mobile device. With the 14-17 hour time difference between friends and family across Canada, it’s how I keep in touch with the northern hemisphere from Down Under.
I love my phone, but don’t let that fool you. My coworker teases me for always turning my data off to conserve my battery and my budget. I am a fan of the WiFi hotspots, so what!? I update my Apps quarterly, I just don’t get as excited as others when there’s a new patch or system update, ok? And this morning as I reached for my transit card, I fumbled around coming across FOUR pens in my bag, jostling around my notepad. Maybe it’s the former print journo in me, the constant list maker or my forgetfulness – you can’t find me anywhere without a pen and paper to spare. I still write postcards and love letters to friends and family, since snail mail is always welcome and not sent enough.
When travelling or in a rush and you forget your phone, those old school habits come in handy. When I first moved to Brisbane I used a cheap Nokia, the backpacker’s best friend. Drop it on the pavement? No worries, it takes a lot of abuse to break one of those bad boys. While the constant clickity-clack of the chiclet-sized buttons are now a distant memory, there’s something to be said about a phone that lasts you through multiple road trips, beach excursions and nights on the town, remaining intact.
But what would I do without my smartphone, you ask? Spend more on postage than data, I’m sure.
Notes From Another Land 