I think that we have lost time as in spare time, before cell phones and smart phones and internet, once you were out in the world, away from landlines, you were pretty much unreachable. Don’t misunderstand me, I’m as addicted to my smartphone and social media as the next Gen Xer, the technology has in many ways made our lives easier, and it’s what totally saved our asses in 2020 with telework and online school.
But.
Before I bought my first cellphone, my boss at the time would send me out on errands. I could take some extra me time before returning to the office, since he had no way of contacting or checking up on me. When I took a train or plane or even a bus, yes, in some situations a cell phone would have been useful, but I was “off the grid” without really going anywhere. Weekends at the beach or in the park or cycling were uniterrupted by messages and calls and pinging of reminders.
The thing is, we had time to enjoy what we were actually doing instead of constantly checking emails. Or maybe that’s just me and my skewed perspective.
30 Years in Italy 