What's Your Fix?

My husband and I have a friend who is smart, attractive, funny and very successful at his job. He is also addicted to World of Warcraft, spending seven or eight hours hunched over his computer, engulfed in his own little world. He can easily talk WOW for long periods of time, discussing strategies and how things are going in the game. I'll be the first to admit that I don't know jack about World of Warcraft, except for what I saw in a South Park episode that labeled them all as greasy social loners.

While it is easy to make a joke about the geek-factor of World of Warcraft, have we paused to look at our own electronic vices?

I recently attended a dinner where the girl next to me texted throughout the whole night. I know people who get the sweats if they don't have cell phones. Some, like me, get antsy if they're near a computer and haven't checked email.

We're all getting a "fix" of some sort. Whether it makes you feel important, helps avoid loneliness or distracts yourself from daily anxiety, excessive use of media or electronics is giving you a type of "fix."

So while it may seem that World of Warcraft has the major geek factor going on, the other fixes don't make us look much cooler. There's nothing cool about loudly gabbing personal details on the phone while standing in line at the coffee shop, hunching over your iPhone at a restaurant or being unable to hold a basic conversation with someone because you're staring at a computer screen.

This story is two years old (and, yes, I realize the Fox News logo will probably turn some off), but it makes a few good points. One person interviewed discussed cell phones as the new "cigarettes," with more people taking "cell phone breaks," fiddling with their phones and using them constantly. They sleep with their phones, work out with their phones, and, most likely, go to dinner with them as well. Gee, it kind of sounds like they're dating their phones.

I used to be that way. Each time I got into my car, I had the strongest desire to pick up my cell phone and call someone, anyone. Usually I'd call one of my friends to chat. But, once I reached my destination, it always seemed tacky to cut the call short. "So, thank you for talking to me while I drove. I no longer need your service." Click. Forget making me look geeky, my phone made me appear a bit rude.

My husband and I decided to get rid of our cell phones earlier this year. He had deactivated his earlier after losing it but never reactivated it. I, on the other hand, was a little more worried. As I said, I liked to talk on the phone while in the car. It just seemed so natural.

After we canceled our plans, I realized I didn't need the phone as much as I thought. Once I took the temptation away, my need for the fix diminished. Besides, if I really need to talk to someone, we have the house phone and an emergency-only phone I keep in my purse.

I'll let you in on a little secret: Sometimes, I still hear "phantom ringing," even when I'm not near a phone. What's phantom ringing? When you think you hear a phone ringing, but it isn't. It's what will make you quickly reach into your bag or grab your phone to check, just because you think you heard the ring.

I'm not suggesting that you break your contact, toss the laptop in the garbage or have an iPhone bonfire. All I'm suggesting is that it is time to think. We can't eliminate some of our fixes, but we can be more conscious of them. Think before you give in to the fix. Every time you open that gadget, consider what you're getting from it. There's a chance it might be more than a quick phone call.

And? If that doesn't work, let vanity guide you. Sure, you might not be a total World of Warcraft geek, but that iPhone just might make your butt look fat in those pants.

Comments

[The Hedonistic Pleasureseeker]

Shoes. Stiletto heels. 200 pair, easily.

[holdingon]

My fix is knitting. I take it everywhere. I knit at the plentiful 3-minutes-red stoplights.
Don't want to be followed by the demands of a cell phone, or the crazy costs.
I read a lot too. Again, quite portable, as Nikelaus said.
I have been frustrated by my failures to engage WOW people in conversation or
small talk on something other than WOW, as were others around me.
To each his own, if it doesn't mess up their job or family life.

[dadw5boys]

MAN STRUGGLE 1000'S OF YEARS TO BE FREE FROM LIVING IN CAVES.

NOW COMPUTERS ARE DRIVING US BACK INTO THE CAVES.

[samuelpablo]

my cave is nice

[Ddorsey]

Huffington post...email...countdown....cell phone....bicycle are my fixes

[capitalismisntamoral]

When I run the faucet to get a drink or wash my hands, I often think I
hear my phone ringing. I think I'm getting early hearing loss - mostly
it shows up as difficulty hearing when there's background noise.
I am most definitely not addicted to my phone, btw. The internets on
the other hand . . .

I'm not a big fan of the addiction model of compulsive behaviors. Well
it's more the mandatory nature of one specific (religious) treatment
plan to the exclusion of others that I have a problem with.

That said, the comments pooh-poohing addiction to devices or
the internet are not helpful. The whole idea of 'addiction' is that most
people can use alcohol, some drugs, devices, food, sex, etc in a
healthy way. You don't have such a problem. Hurray.

It's a subset of people for which these things cause problems in
people's lives. To be simplistic and redundant, that's a problem.

If you want to call these problems addiction, I'm ok with that as
long as it doesn't lead to some never-ending XA 'program' of
treatment.

[RobinSeattle]

I have a website and a blog and I am addicted to working on them. I get mondo satisfaction with them. When I am out of town and can't create stuff for them I go through major withdrawals. Everybody has his vices and stuff like WoW and talking on cellphones are relatively benign (thnough using a cellphone in a car is not a good idea unless you're parked).

I personally don't own a cellphone and even when my landline rings I find it irritating because I am either working on the aforementioned web projects or playing guitar or reading. I wonder just how many people would classify themselves as selfish with their time. I definitely am and some of that is due to being so hooked into the web. So I find people who chat endlessly on their cellphone (like my uncle does) annoying and kinda socially needy, but it's also none of my business as long as they aren't calling me.

[Badbone]

Amazing how some people can take what I view as a privilege, us living in this modern era, and see nothing but a negative.

We have devices that let us communicate with the people on the other side of the world almost instantly. We have almost endless amounts of knowledge at our immediate fingertips. Some would say this is just short of a miracle. Some would say it is the next step in mankind"s social evolution.

And some like Ms. Mosteller, view it as a burden. Funny, about half the population on earth would love to be so burdened. Such a burden was stuff of a wonderful future, just two generations ago.

I"m not saying technology doesn"t have its downsides. But let"s not lose sight of its upsides as well.

[Jude2004]

I don't feel addicted to anything, and if your friend chooses to spend 8 hours a day playing WOW and yet still has friends and a job, how serious is his "addiction"? And how does his addiction hurt anyone, especially him? That doesn't make it like a conventional addiction, say to alcohol or drugs. We each choose every minute how to spend our next minutes. I'm choosing to respond to your posting, even though I doubt anyone will read this. The only time I ever felt addicted to something was when I lived in Mexico where the water wasn't pure and soft drinks were cheap. I drank several each day. Then I returned home where soft drinks were expensive and that was the end of that "addiction." Addictions come and go. Choosing not to have a cell phone (a choice I made as well since I'm not fond of conventional phones either) is a valid choice, but it's more a matter of simplifying your life than of ridding your life of a "fix."

[snarkopolitan]

Huffpost comments. Must tear myself away. Eventually.

[TakeSake]

I know what you mean. I tried once or twice. Fell off the wagon.

The interesting thing about spending time on a site like this, where the reader interaction is just as important as the content, is how it really illustrates the truth behind the following phrase:
"It takes two to be co-dependent"

[hrayovac]

Keith O and Hardball on the TeeBee. Email. Music composing on a Mac. HuffPo. Financial Times. IMDB and that will about do it. Oh, LP's and a good stereo amp. A social life, a little hampered by the petrol cost but which I refuse to lose entirely.

[Nikelaus]

My fix is my Amazon Kindle electronic book. I read all the time now, more than before, because it's easy to read with one hand, easy to buy books (and cheaper) on the go, and because it's lighter than most books. Plus I subscribe to two newspapers on it.

I wouldn't read while dining out, of course, but if I'm in a bar and not engaged with anyone, I'll pull that puppy out.