By George Tarabay
I am not no hater, and I am the biggest preacher of ‘following your heart’ and ‘following your gut’. But maybe in my previous articles I failed to complete my advocacy for these points, because you should not only follow your heart, but you must also heed your dignity.
What is it in the past two years, that people cannot enjoy anything unless they post it online? I recently was at the Think Again concert by the Afterthought band (Check them out, NOW) and these guys were on stage sweating their way into the show’s climax. Everyone was blown away by it, but everyone was also snapping or taking videos!
I just wanted to stand up and scream, “Enjoy the live performance, fools!” But then, I got hungry so I went and ate a sandwich in my car instead.
What is up with people? You crack a joke, they laugh. Then, they immediately ask: Can you repeat it? I want to snap it! A kid could do something cute, people would “Ahhhhh”, then immediately ask: Can you repeat it, A’ammo? I want to post about what you did!
What are we teaching our kids? That they should be stuck on replay, in 10-second increments (or 15 seconds for my Instagram story homies)?
The beauty of personal growth is encapsulating yourself in the experience. I almost never use my phone on vacation, because if I paid 1800 KD to visit the Maldives for four nights, you can bet your sweet potato that I’m going to experience every second through my seven senses (sixth sense + one spare).
I completely understand this phenomenon if you are a blogger. Film, or make an art piece to show the beauty of the country you visited, or the moment you experienced, I am for all of these things. But do I really need to see 13 story posts of you’re eating a salad? Or you posing in different ways? Your kids? Or your sickly friend at the hospital?
It’s as if, since the camera migrated from the big studios and into our pockets, everything became up for grabs. No boundaries, no sensitivity, no empathy, just a collective of moments we post to increase our fake likability online and pretend that we are cool. Sadly, trying to impress people who are in turn trying to impress us.
People live for their stories, but when the day comes and you sit next to the chimney fire (Unless Elon Musk invents something better, and he will) with your grandkids, what stories from your life will you share? All the stories you have would have been sadly purged after 24 hours.
You’re missing out on that great performance. You’re missing out on soaking your eyes with that breathtaking scene around you. You’re missing out on holding the hand of that friend who needs you for support, not for live coverage! And most importantly, you’re missing out on your kids and they’re missing out on their parent!
It’s not ok that every time your kid interacts with you, he would have to look through a lens and see the apple logo.
Life is gigantic, and I am almost definitely sure that it was not created so we can experience every single second through a 5-inch screen. If that were the case, then why bother do anything else?
As always, I end every article with a joke, but this time the joke is what we have become…
Anyway, do you, but please don’t shove it in my face.
Alone I stand, alone I fight this massive movement of…Oh wait. I can unfollow people. Never mind all of the above.
Don’t follow me on Instagram, but follow @afterthoughtrox. They cool, son!
George Tarabay is a local radio host, comedian, and marketing expert. For his latest updates, follow him on Instagram @GeorgeTarabay. For more comic relief, check out George on Facebook.com/Georgethecomic.
