Last night's snowstorm in the Baltimore-Washington area gave me first hand experience with how technology and social media have radically changed our lives. We tend to take those changes for granted as we use these tools during our daily, routine lives. However, when something other than the routine happens, it makes you think about the impact of those tools.
This snowstorm started putting down snow at about 4:00 PM at a rate of 1-2 inches per hour and kept up at that pace for 4-5 hours. Always wanting to get as much done as possible, I got out of work a little later than I had hoped (4:15 PM vs my planned 3:30 PM). That 45 minutes may have turned my commute from 1 hour 15 minutes into over 9 hours.
I called my wife several times during the first two hours of my commute home, which would normally have taken me about 40 minutes. There's the first example of how technology has impacted our lives in situations that can cause concern for our loved ones. 20 years ago I didn't own a cell phone; if this would have happened to me as a newlywed, my wife would have been MUCH more worried than she was last night. While she was concerned, she and I could easily call one another on our cell phones. While we sometimes decry "constantly being connected", it was a blessing last night. During the remaining 7 hours (5 of which were spent sitting - not moving at all) on I-70 westbound about 1-2 miles east of the Mt. Airy, MD exit (exit 68), my wife and I spoke several times. Not only did it make her feel better knowing where I was and that I was OK, it helped me to pass the time and not go stir crazy. Hearing her voice made things "normal" in a not so normal situation.
The other example is social media. As many people do these days, I have a facebook account and check it on pretty much a daily basis. I don't post daily, but I do check it to see if any of my friends have anything to say. I do post more often when something "out of the routine" happens (e.g. the NFL playoffs, this snowstorm). Last night, I posted messages using my Droid smartphone indicating that I was stuck in traffic. Throughout the evening, some of my facebook friends commented on my posts, sending prayers and offering their support. In particular, one friend, after one of my posts later in the evening, asked me to please call her. We spoke for about 15-20 minutes about what was happening, if I had enough gas, and about several of her other friends that we also stuck in the same traffic jam. When the cars started moving in front of me, we cut our conversation short. We spoke several other times between then and when I finally arrived home, with her repeating her offer of a place to sleep if I couldn't make it to my home, which was 30 miles from where I was stuck in traffic.
Again, 20 years ago the world wide web and social media didn't exist. While I did have a book that I had brought home from work to read, that would have gotten old after an hour or so. Having a smart phone (something I didn't have 18 months ago) again made the time spent stuck along with thousands of other motorists go by much more quickly and lessened the stress that I might have otherwise felt if I wasn't able to check other posts on facebook and post about my own experiences. My posts enabled many of my friends to be able to share in my experience and send their prayers and good wishes, and even offer up a place to lay my head for the night. 20 years ago, they wouldn't have known where I was, and for some, probably wouldn't have cared; not that they are cold-hearted, but if a tree falls in the woods, and no one is there to hear it.... Well, you know how that ends. Again, we complain about being constantly connected with our smart phones, email, texts, twitter, facebook, etc., but this was a perfect example of how social media and technology is beneficial, especially in times where things are not so normal and our friends and loved ones would be feeling LESS connected if we didn't have these modern day tools in our lives.
