Watch where you're going!

Transcript

When I was riding home on my bicycle the other day, I nearly collided head-on with with another bicycle. A high school boy and I had been traveling in opposite directions on opposite sides of a street, but he gradually swerved across the street as he manipulated his mobile phone. His friend, another boy who had continued to ride in a straight line, shouted at him, but he didn't hear. I also shouted, but he was oblivious to the situation.

He was wearing ear buds for a portable media player. With his hearing impaired by his media player and his visual attention distracted by his mobile phone, he was out of touch with his environment. That is no way to ride a bicycle!

Fortunately, he recovered just in time. He swerved back away from me, and we passed each other with our shoulders nearly touching. He apologized as we passed, and he was obviously shaken by our near miss.

Nowadays many people that I see in public seem unaware of other people and things that are happening around them. All of their attention seems to be focused on virtual experiences as they manipulate their personal communication and entertainment devices. Some people even forget to watch where they're going!

I wonder why they intentionally disable themselves. Are their songs and text messages that much more interesting than the reality of the present situation? As a person who enjoys the real sights and sounds of daily life, it's hard for me to appreciate the overwhelming attraction of virtual experiences.