Drowning in consumerism

I really do detest this time of year.

I was going to come back and write a second accompanying post yesterday, but, alas, circumstances dictated otherwise. Let's just say the short version would be this: I went shopping with my mom and sister, and then when we finally went to ring everything up at around 10:45 pm, it took forever. I finally got back home around 11:30. Ugh.

That's one of the reasons why I hate this time of year, really; displaying affection through the means of consumerism. I mean, even I feel guilty if I don't get anyone anything, and I'm the one on a soapbox about it.

Like I've learned in sociology this semester (which was a surprisingly awesome class, it seems I lucked out with my professor), the practices of a certain society or nation reflect it's culture. But honestly, how depressing is it, for instance, that a man need to buy a diamond necklace for his wife or very significant other to show her how much he loves her? Shouldn't the words and interactions be enough? (I don't like diamonds either, but I'll save that one for another day.)

Speaking of sociology (and returning to the topic I wanted to write about yesterday but got distracted by Nick, as I am often wont to do)...

Ever since I bought the thing, I've always found the cover of my sociology textbook to be fascinating and a little oxymoronic. On it are... actually, you know what, I'll just find a picture of it.

There we go. Now, I don't know if you can see what each person is doing in that picture, but all of them except the second person from the left hand side are either talking on a cell phone or using an iPod. The girl on the far left is even on her laptop at the same time.

The textbook definition (forgive the pun) of sociology is "the study of human beings and their interactions with each other". Now, in the picture, does it look like these prime examples of college student specimens actually interacting with each other?

I thought not.

But what troubles me so much is not the picture itself, but the message; if this is the definition of teenage social interaction in this day and age, what does that say about our culture and values? That we care more about our personal entertainment than actually talking to someone face to face?

I'm not ragging on cell phones or iPods or laptops; in fact, I have one of each. What I'm saying is that, while the technology is useful and wonderful, at what point does it become too much?

Just a little something to think about.