On a trip to Yellowstone, we checked into a hotel in Bozeman, Montana. Saw 2 large busses in the parking lot with “Go Team” messages painted on the windows. Saw many boys, around 13 to 15, roaming the grounds. The clerk said a basketball tournament was in town, so she would put us at the end of the hall, as far away as possible. I thought, “Oh No!, a night of rowdiness with noisy, testosterone filled teens, running the halls with basketballs.”
Didn’t hear a thing. Around 11:30 I went to the lobby. There they were, about 15 of them, draped over the furniture like monkeys in a zoo. Every one of them silent, motionless, staring into phones and tablets, mesmerized. The only thing moving was their thumbs. The only noise was a few quiet beeps.
Agreed! I give them a pass on this (because part of being a grown-up is to approve or disapprove of the actions of teenagers;) . At some point during the day those kids are working hard at practicing and playing sports.
As for the more common device zombies, however, I totally blame the parents if they can’t get their kids to go out and play, you know, go to the park and goof off, take a bike ride just for the heck of it, throw a ball or two. Not singling out your gf Fidalgo! Just a generalization, not taking into account individual cases.
Our kids, 12 and 14, only get tech-time at the end of the day after they help clean up, have had plenty of time outside, played with their baby brother a bit, etc. Then they read for half an hour, minimum. And, they love it! “Mom, can I read my book now??” Haha! My wife has it dialed in like a champ! Great kids and totally creative and hilarious.
All this bragging is just to say…Generally, parents can break the zombie cycle themselves if they just take that device and kick the kids out of the house for a while every day. Set some damn limits!
i am singling her out , we have just got custody of him and its been a nightmare , i finally had to put my foot down and take all devices during the week , i have a 6 , 5 and 2 yo that i must worry about anyway no offense taken , trust me i agree with you 100 …
Sounds like me. I’m very unpopular during holidays when kids and grandkids are here because I make them turn off devices and actually talk to each other. What stinks is having to do the same with 40+ year old siblings.
I call it the “hypnotized, spoiled rotten, how the hell are they ever going to get a job” generation. I have one niece who has her phone set up for auto-answer on a game they play. (She’s 13 years old) We will be sitting in their house and I will hear a kid yelling at her over a phone and she runs to the phone and stops everything she’s doing.
And this is the generation that’s going to care for us in our old age, provided they don’t push the wrong button on the IPhone APP they’re doing the triple bypass from as they summer in the Bahamas
