Picture of a picture
I'm trying to remember my life without being tethered to a cell phone and I can't do it. I know I went to this place and that place, out in the middle of nowhere, and somehow found my way without a GPS, but that feels like medieval times by now. Now I need satellites to tell me to turn left or right out of my own driveway.
We were armed only with directions scribbled on a piece of paper saying things like "turn left at the cows" and "the 3rd light after the second Taco Bell", and then I was able to somehow reverse them to get home ("turn right at the cows") in the pitch dark and nobody thought much about any of this. I would be sent to pick up this or that person, with a vague "I'll meet you outside when the game is over" promise on the way out the door, and immediately come upon multiple doors and multiple exits and any number of places that could pass for "outside" and no place whatsoever to park, and somehow, eventually, everybody found who they needed to find in a sort of organized, frenetic chaos that was expected and dealt with fairly rationally. Now even before I get there I'm outside I'm firing off texts "if you're not here under the civil war monument (“which one?” “the one covered in birdshit and gang graffiti”. “Ok, be right there”) in 20 seconds you can walk home.." and I swear it takes even longer to connect because there's no sense of urgency. They know where you are. They know you'll wait, despite the threats. As BB King said...."the thrill is gone". It’s the best of times. And it’s the worst of times.
“Where are you????’
“Coming.”
Well, that’s a lie.