January 28, 2023
I'm here protecting guests at 0240 hours at a taco stand. That's 2:40 A.M. to you. As I look around to see the sights and hear the sounds of my existence, I still marvel at the fact that we exist here on earth. I notice that most people here waiting in the taco line no longer pay attention to this. Maybe it's too late to notice? Perhaps they're too high to care? However, it is evident that people live their lives on their phones. It begs me to ask, "Hey Google, hey Siri: is there life outside my screen?"
From my vantage point, it doesn't seem that those around me notice that life is happening around them. First, I will tell you, my loyal reader, that I will admit that even though I am writing this blog on my iPhone as I type out my complaint that those around me are not paying attention to the environment around them because those people are on the phone, we in the law enforcement biz have a thing we like to call, situational awareness. It is a good curse to have in law enforcement. Situational awareness is bred into us officers to be aware of every little nuance occurring within our span of control and identify potential problems and hazards continuously.
I see men and women who are buried in their Galaxy or iPhone, living in some alternative online reality. They're probably watching videos of life on their phone rather than observing the life around them.
They could Google a sunrise or ask Siri when the sunset is. An excellent YouTube vlogger could be documenting their adventure that piqued their interest (guilty). One of them could argue, "Hey, I am here getting my late-night fix for the munchies I'm craving at this 24-hour taco stand. Buddy, I'm living the dream." But the people I see sitting here on the bench or standing, waiting for their order number to be called, collect their food, and then scurry back to their car to devour their taco while holding that device in their hand.
If the man with a Jurassic Park t-shirt and denim shorts is tapping away at his phone. He would only look up, but he didn't notice the stray dog in the parking lot directly in front of him rummaging through a pizza box that someone carelessly discarded on the ground. The little white dog comes up with a significant score, a half-pepperoni pizza pie. He scampers into the darkness like a cheetah that captures an antelope scurrying off to eat it. But no, alas, he is, tap-tap-tapping away on his phone. He could have possibly recorded it and uploaded it to his page. I bet it would have gone viral.
More people are coming and getting in the taco line. Tap-tap on the phone; glance up as the line moves. They stop briefly to look at the menu. It seems that this place is more popular than Taco Bell. The fluorescent lighting hangs on the walls right above the take-out window. A mural covers the ugly yellow painted on the rest of the building. There is a busy road directly to the north. The car traffic flow is dwindling as people are mostly home due to the hour of the night. The only ones here getting the tacos have a longing to transcend sleep. And yet this night drags on. These people still do not notice anything around them. Like a computer programed, they order their food, wait, and interact with their phone. Life is here for the taking, but they'd rather jettison off on the World Wide Web.
Do they remember they have a family? They probably do. The phone's lock screen and wallpaper more than likely display their loved ones on a fun trip, or maybe they have a selfie of themselves. Funny, the family picture on their phone is probably of the same loved one they are ignoring as they sit next to each other. Waiting to gather tacos, too. I suppose they will notice each other eventually. Someone has to ask, "Who's Apple Pay we using?"
Order, eat, and gigabytes, wash, rinse, repeat. That's a strange combination. It's Wednesday night. It is a quiet environment, and it is so clear that not even light pollution can drown out every star in the sky. The air is cool and crisp for a Florida night. But the people here do not notice it. "Hey Google, Hey Siri, is there life out there?" Yes, just look up, dummy.
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