Like many other iPhone 6S users, my phone was recalled for a defective battery. As is customary with Apple, I made an appointment with a 'Genius' at the local store to bring it in for repair.
The closest store is inside a shopping mall. I hate malls. I arrived at my appointment and was told that it would take 90 minutes or more. 90 minutes?? Who has 90 minutes in the middle of the day? And what on earth would I do in a shopping mall for 90 minutes? That thought gave me enough anxiety to walk out with my defective phone. I would suffer through recharging my phone three times a day a while longer, the sacrifice was well worth avoiding a shopping mall for 90 minutes OR MORE!
I decided to make another appointment at a different Apple store, with an entrance off the street. It was Saturday afternoon. I dropped off my phone and the 'Genius' told me that it would be a two hour wait, or more. I was going to be phone-less for two hours OR MORE? I took a deep breath. I could do this. I made plans to meet a friend, have lunch, go on a photo walk. I was covered. I COULD DO IT!
No sooner had the massive glass Apple doors shut behind me that I was already reaching for my phone. Yikes... I was not off to a great start. One of my biggest non-life threatening fears is to lose my phone, especially when I travel. It's my office, my immediate link to family and friends, my back-up camera, my map, my access to Uber, my music entertainment, my encyclopedia. And who was going to tell me which restaurant in the area had the best customer reviews?? Deep breath...
My friend, wanting to be supportive, put her phone away too. This was turning into an experiment. How dependent are we really on our mobile devices?
We went to a nearby restaurant and enjoyed a lovely conversation. I felt my Apple watch knocking on a few occasions. But they were phantom knocks, because all my Apple watch could indicate was the time. THE TIME! I had never really used it to give me the time until then. Interesting observation... Through out the conversation we also found ourselves with questions regarding movies or cities and my first instinct was to ask Siri. We left our questions unanswered for the time being.
We then walked down to the nearby lake, my Fujifilm Camera in hand. My camera is to me what a security blanket is to a child. It comforts me. Was I starting to feel the same way about my iPhone? I wasn't ready to admit it. I soon spotted a street sign that would make a good joke for a friend overseas and immediately reached for my pocket to snap a pic and send it via Messenger. But no phone. The need to share immediately is a direct product of social media. I'm a very spontaneous person, so it's something I do several times a day. Something makes me think of someone, I take a picture and send it immediately via SMS, Messenger or WhatsApp. This too has become a way of life.
Two hours had passed and we made our way back to the Apple store to retrieve my 'Precious'. By then I was convinced that I had to make some necessary changes to the way I had become dependent on it.
I turned it on to see what I had missed. Several emails, a handful of text messages, a few more via Messenger. No, the world had not stopped spinning, my kids didn't try to reach me with an emergency situation. All was okay!
Ironically the only phone call I had missed was from the Apple 'Genius' telling me that my iPhone was ready for pick up. That made me LOL as I connected the 'Precious' to bluetooth in my VW...
Lesson learned, I will take some measures to unplug and recharge my own batteries... I will update you soon!
Do you suffer from the same affliction?