Becoming Insular

Everyone has their own little world. With all the devices and choices we have these days, everyone can tailor their entertainment and media to whatever their preference. The 6 people closest to me right now in the airport are:

• eating
• reading a magazine
• painting (using a stylus and the touchscreen on his laptop)
• talking on a cellphone
• playing NBA Jam (a video game released circa 1992) on his laptop
• reading a book
  

Does having whatever we want make us happier? It might. I'm probably happier sitting here typing on a laptop than I would be if I were simply staring off into space.

While it may be hard to prove our overall happiness has improved one way or another, it certainly has made us more insular. Aside form the guy on his cellphone it's like a library. Hardly anyone is talking to anyone else.

I'll admit I feel that way sometimes. More often than I used to, I find myself at gatherings thinking about how I could be doing other things, usually more solitary things.

Does this make me anti-scial? It might, but no moreso than many of the people I see around me...