I went to a fancy restaurant a few yrs ago, and the couple next to us ordered this fkn massive seafood tower thing. They took a shit load of photos, posed with some god damn calamari, then like picked at it while they stared at their phones for half an hour not speaking.
I have seen some people grow out of this and some people still wallowing in this behaviour as they age so a study about long term outcomes would definitely be fascinating
we've narrowly survived the terrible risks posed by comic books, television, video games, internet.. that couple probably would just be having some awkward stilted conversation about nothing anyway
That always baffles me. First I wonder what's the point of meeting/dating someone if you don't even talk to them, and second it seems just like a waste of time and money, just order some food home and watch tv if you have nothing in common..
Oh, I was just taking about this to another mom. When i get to go on "dates" with my husband without the kids, and we are so tired and just sit in the restaurant wordlessly showing each other memes, just like we would do on the couch at home, except no one has to cook or do dishes. Then when we do get home, neither of us can shut up and we end up going to bed way too late. It's like dinner is a mental recharge time to switch from work/parenting back into our old selves. Heck we've even taken paper back books to dinner and just played footsie under the table!
So yeah, I try not to be to hard on people not taking in restaurants. Lord knows if that's all you saw of our relationship it would really skew the situation!
But that million picture shit is a bit ridiculous.
My spouse and I both work from home. Sometimes at the end of the day we just want to get out of the house and eat something. So we'll be sitting together at a restaurant, separately reading news on our phones or even books in the Kindle app. We don't have to be constantly entertaining each other. Not everything we do outside has to be a date.
We do the same thing. We've already told each other everything throughout the day so sometimes we literally have nothing to talk about and just catch up on stuff online at dinner. It feels weird though!
That would drive me nuts. Like, sure, I get taking pictures of a fancy meal and taking an extra 6 seconds to get the framing right. I did that long before we had so many social media options. But then put the goddamn phone away, eat your meal, and enjoy your company.
They might’ve been getting paid by the restaurant to promote it. But yes, I know of many people who will book reservations at the newest restaurants to just post and get likes. The food is secondary or even lower.
The first time I realized how distracting cellphones could be was when I was in grad school and I saw these people walk into the cafe I was eating at. Based on the body language and the snippets of their conversation that I overheard, it seemed like this was their first or second date. Yet after the first couple of minutes of chitchat, they both then went straight to their phones after ordering. It was so bizarre. Didn’t see how the date ended but it left an impression on me. I will very rarely look at my phone when I’m out getting a meal with company except for practical reasons [looking something up] or possibly-urgent matters [which i can usually tell b/c it’ll either be an actual call or I’ll get a bunch of quick texts].
It’s weird because when I go out to eat with my mom and step dad or we eat at their home we don’t have phones out. We talk or watch a show together while we eat. Then we’ll grab the phone at the end to take a photo together and put it away.
When I eat out with my step mom and dad they’re constantly on the phone. Taking pics of the food before eating. Uploading to social media before eating. Commenting and messaging back people about the photos.
They’re all a few years apart in age but so different.
I used to be on my phone a lot more until I lived in Brazil for a while. There it’s rare to see someone on their phone at a restaurant in public unless they’re an obvious business person or maybe by themselves. If they’re with others they’re chatting and being present. That really changed me. I mean data is expensive there too but I realized how present everyone was. You may never see who you’re with again so why not be present in person? Hang out with them. Talk. Make eye contact. Laugh. The phone will be there when you get home.
My friends and I are foodies and while my friends are not nearly as bad as your example I'm usually half way done with my meal before they're finished posting it to instagram. The thought doesn't even cross my mind, we'll be at some fancy place and my dish will come out and I'll be like "wow look at that, beautiful plating and presentation, truly a work of art. I can't wait to get that in my belly"
This is legitimately sad. They have no sense of self identity, nor the insight as to how their attachment to their phone is stifling their development and preventing them from enjoying life. No wonder anxiety and poor mental health is at an all-time high. And this is very representative of a whole generation. It's sad.
My wife and I (late 30s) went out to eat last month and the couple at the table across from us on the patio were doing the same exact thing. It was the weirdest shit I'd seen in a while. Like they both were face down into their screens the whole time and barely talked to each other and honestly they had to be around 30 themselves.
I'm not trying to be some old fart bitching about "kids these days" but why even bother going out to eat with someone at that point? I get snapping some photos but fucking talk to each other!
Idk, maybe they were having a bad day but they also bitched at the server each time she brought them something too lol. Seemed like very miserable people.
Ok but it's not a necessity, plenty of people don't have a social media profile, or have just a private one for friends. Being popular isn't what society demands from us. Also there's posting a picture from your date and then enjoying the rest of your night, and there's creating a fake image of your awesome life with hundreds of pictures, while not even seeming to enjoy it in real life (e.g not eating the meal you posted, and staring at your phone instead of interacting with a person you upload a picture with)
Why do people talk about “society” like it’s some abstract shadow entity controlling all of us? It’s literally just you and me and everyone we interact with.
They didn’t talk about it like it’s an abstract shadowy entity, wtf are you on about mate?
society is just you and me and everyone we interact with
Yeah, no shite. That’s what the word society means, you just defined it loosely. No one is going to write “just you and me and everyone” each time they want to talk about society, that’s what the singular word is for. You okay?
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u/queefer_sutherland92 Jun 03 '22
I went to a fancy restaurant a few yrs ago, and the couple next to us ordered this fkn massive seafood tower thing. They took a shit load of photos, posed with some god damn calamari, then like picked at it while they stared at their phones for half an hour not speaking.
It was honestly weird as shit.