There are only a few things in the world that I truly can’t stand: Monkeys. People who fashion themselves “history buffs”. The sound of my alarm clock. And mass holiday text messages.
But why, Meck? Glad you asked.
Most people would say that technology has made us more “in touch” today than ever before. But if you look at all this “connectedness” the modern world gives us, whether it be through texting or social networking sites, I would argue that not only are we not more “connected”, but actually, we are more alone than ever. Our relationships, though we may have 57 followers on twitter or 432 facebook friends, are superficial. Given the hypothetical choice, most people always say that they would rather have 3 close friends over 300 casual ones. But, do we really live our lives that way? Are we really close?
Case and point: About a week and a half after thanksgiving, I received a scathing email from my coworker when I asked for a favor. His problem? I never responded to the “Happy Turkey Day” message that he sent me on Thanksgiving. “I sent it to everyone in my contacts,” he said “and you were the only one who didn’t respond.”
Now, he probably didn’t know this, but I only have 250 text messages a month. That’s all I need and that’s all I want. Anything over that costs me $.15 a piece. Not a lot. But they add up (especially when just about everyone in your contacts is sending you a text). Sure, the total isn’t a ton. But is it polite? No.
You wouldn’t call your friends collect to say Happy New Year. You wouldn’t send out your Christmas cards postage due. So why would you charge for a text to do the same thing (which is even more impersonal than the call or the card anyway)?
Yes, yes. Lots of people have unlimited text. But, lots of people don’t. What if I didn’t have text at all? Then I wouldn’t have heard anything from coworker. So how sincere can the sentiment really be?
I have heard that it’s the thought that counts. But if the thought and effort is 15 seconds to type an impersonal message that you send to everyone in your phone book, than I think I’ll pass.
I’d rather get a phone call or a card from 3 people this Christmas than a text message from 300.
Lick
I guess it has sort of become a New Years tradition with my friends to text everybody right after midnight and wish them “Happy New Year!” Though, it can be quite difficult when you’re holding a Roman candle in one hand and a champagne flute in the other.
ehh i say its good and bad. I dont send out a message to everyone, but to people I think I would wanna just say hey to. There is alot of people I am friends with but not good enough friends to actually call. I mean I dont mind but if I call someone on christmas to say merry christmas, they are really important to me, and I want to have a conversation with them. I see txt as being the new holiday card of sorts for a younger generation. It does suck though that they cost the people who receive it sometimes $0.15 but thats the bastard cell phone carriers fault. Well I guess I will just have to call Meck this year and say Merry Christmas lol.