A general panic set in on New Year’s Eve in Whitefish. It wasn’t caused by the crowded bars and restaurants, or the weather or the lack of parking. No, this was far graver: cell service had crashed and no one could communicate – well, they could, but they would have to do it in person.
People stared at their phones as their texts failed to go through. They waved their arms in the air hoping to find a fleeting signal. And, for some, their plans were likely derailed. I have sympathy for friends unable to connect to ring in the New Year, but less for those irked they couldn’t post their selfie on Facebook. No, when 2015 arrived, many revelers had to simply enjoy each other’s company instead of posting status updates online to prove what a great time they were having.
I use social media and may be too young to write a column about the good old days, but I will anyway. I somehow managed to survive my youth all the way through college without a cell phone, social media page or computer that could process much faster than a typewriter. My younger friends wonder how it happened and, anymore, with my reliance on various gadgets, so do I. But I got by and even made a few friends along the way.
I tell these millenials that there are benefits to not having a cell phone – first and foremost is commitment. As a college student, when I made plans with classmates at the University of Montana, I was apt to keep them. Getting ahold of someone on their landline was spotty – they often either weren’t home or not answering their phone. So, when you told someone in person that you would meet him or her at 9 p.m., you did. There was less flaking by sending five-word text messages that ended with one of these 🙂
Being unavailable also had its benefits. If someone called your landline and you didn’t answer, that was that. You either couldn’t or didn’t want to talk. Today, try ignoring a text message from a friend or significant other for more than 30 minutes without feeling guilty. I occasionally ignore my cell phone, but I’m also reminded what a jerk I am for doing that.
Finally, phones now are little computers and aren’t really used to talk, at least among the younger set. Instead, they “check-in” with their locations and communicate in emoticons, Emojis and acronyms. They use the machines in their hands to express on social media how they feel about the weather, their dog or the politics of the day.
No, I don’t want to take a time machine back to the early 2000s. I love my phone for taking photos, checking the news and even talking. And yes, I peruse and post my own updates to social media. It’s fun. It’s convenient. I embrace it. So does just about everyone else.
While it’s unclear what disrupted the system on Dec. 31, I would guess it was simply a case of too many people using their phones in too small of an area, overloading the phone carriers. After all, it was New Year’s Eve in Whitefish – the town was packed and there were a lot of selfies to take.
Recently, I told my nephews a story about my time working a summer job in Yellowstone National Park. “I had no cable!” I self-righteously explained. “I had no phone! I had no Internet!” They didn’t care. They had heard similar stories before and during this telling continued to point their noses at their various devices.
Perhaps the story is stale, but I certainly enjoyed the holiday, watching the ball drop in a room full of people undistracted by the temptation to record the moment in real time.