95% Worthless

Cell phone use is on the rise. People are texting. They're IMing. Thy're on the web. They're calling one another. They're disconnecting the land lines and going all wireless all-the-time.

And 95% of what they're doing on those phones is meaningless.

This is what happens 95% of the time on a cell phone - on calls, texts, etc.

"Hey - What are you doing"
"Nothing"
"What are you doing"
"Nothing"
"Cool"
"Yeah"
"I'm hungry"

(long pause)

"Hugh"
"What are you doing"
"Nothing"

This is what we're doing with our time folks. While the stock market gyrates and the politicians listen to each other talk about how political they are we - humanity - are talking about nothing.

I know this because of Charles Ingalls. Charles Ingalls lived on the prairie. Charles Ingalls lived off of the land. Charles Ingalls made furniture with his bare hands from wood that he harvested from trees that he may or may not have planted... with his hands. And you know what... he didn't have a cell phone.

You know what he did to relax? He smoked his pipe and worked. He didn't go back to the cabin and say to Ma, "Hey Ma... what are you doing?" And she didn't say, "Well gosh Pa... nothing" (because she was churning the butter AND working the loom). He finished working his 16 hour day, then he prayed, then he ate supper, and then - to relax - he went out to the freezing cold barn and made a hand carved cradle for his unborn child.

Here is the point. Charlie wasn't missing much on Twitter or Facebook or anything else. He had a full life surrounded by a loving family and meaningful work. We can all learn something here.

So the next time you raise the electronic leash to you ear or face remember the 95% of what is about to happen - is worthless.