mtony75

I think I am out of touch. Like old man “Get off my lawn” out of touch. I see my kids in their room playing video games, talking on face time, listening to music on their Google Home. Which if I have to be honest I don't mind at all. But there is always something to do. I can't remember the last time I saw my kids left to their own devices. They are always in contact with one of their friends or peers. I mean I can remember whole weekends where I was stuck in my room trying to flip the score of Donkey Kong on my Colecovision.

I'm not saying being solitary is necessarily a great trait to have. Not that I had to survive 1800s frontier life. But for long periods of time I could depend on myself for entertainment. Reading a book, watching TV, trying to squint just right so I can try to make out shapes on scrambled adult channels, walking. Thinking back its amazing I didn't become a recluse.

My kids are completely different animals. They have more hours communicating with their friends than I think I did with anyone in life up to their age. They have had friends move away that they can keep in touch with via facetime, iMessage and X-box. I had friends move to another complex and never saw them again. I is just amazing that they have a peer group that is not dependent on locality. But does this prevent them from making new friends? I mean if Dunbar's Theory is true and you never loose a friend can you really be open to new relationships? Or will you be unwilling to meet new people? Can you really keep the friends you meet in elementary and middle school all though High School, college and beyond? Will be an interesting social experiment to watch.

It is a little sobering to see how much better friends my kids are with people they see once a month or less than I was with people I saw almost everyday. Although that might be a separate commentary on myself.