What do you think about this?

[Daisy]

Yesterday morning OH had an early hospital appointment, meaning we had to leave home before 8 am. You never know how long these appointments will take, so I made sure Eva had a walk and proper toilet breaks before we left. We went out about 7.15 and got to the place where she normally asks to cross the road, but instead she stopped dead and froze, staring across the road. I could see she was upset, worried and wouldn't move an inch.

On the other side there was nothing except three young teens waiting for their school bus. Not something that would bother Eva normally, I thought, but they were all standing a couple of feet away from each other, totally immobile like statues, with their heads down peering at their phones. We're so used to seeing people using their phones outside that I hadn't thought anything about it until I pictured it through Eva's eyes. She couldn't work out what was happening at all, but how odd, that a small group of people were ignoring each other, not moving a muscle and totally silent. I wondered if she thought they were even people.

By the time we returned the youngsters had gone, but out of interest I took her back that way in the afternoon. She did the same thing - stopped and froze, but after a few seconds realised things were back to normal and happily crossed the road.

Sometimes I think today's youngsters are missing out on so much because they're glued to their tech gadgets.

[Gemini]

That's interesting Daisy, that Eva realised that that was strange behaviour.

On a slightly different topic cats are very good at spooking their owners by staring at nothing in an alarmed way! Sometimes they have looked out from the living room at our stairs in that way.
I sort of like to imagine they can see the spirits of our lovely cats now gone, but more likely I think they can hear random noises we cant pick up and are trying to work out where from.

[Daisy]

That's interesting, Gem, and I've seen DIL1's cat appearing to stare at nothing. I do wonder if our pets pick up on things that are beyond our senses, and it's lovely to think P and M could be picking up the aura or spirits of other cats you have loved.

I think often when dogs stare into space you can see their nostrils twitching 19 to the dozen and I often watch Eva pointing her head in different directions, picking up scents. I expect it's the same with sounds.

What struck me most yesterday was how still the students were - totally frozen into their online worlds.

[Oma]

Daisy
There is going to be a whole generation with stooped backs and no social skills at all,
The ones that scare me is those that are so busy with their phones they just walk out into traffic.

GSs phone pings constantly when he's at ours but he never looks at it,
He knows I don't like it and as he said when he comes to ours it's to see us and catch up not to talk to his mates he can do that anytime.

Eva must have thought they were statue's ,
Strange what animals pick up on.

Storm sits and stares at me for ages , even if he's in the garden he will just stare at me through the patio doors and if B closes the sitting room door so he can't see me he comes dashing in.

One of DDs cats is fascinated by the dining room light , it will just stare at it and occasionally mew,
I think like Gem said they can hear things we can't ,

[Lizzie48]

Oma, a lot cycle with the phones in their hands!

Dogs can act strange Daisy, I had a dog and during the renovation years ago they removed the railing and replaced them with glass, he was no bother during the day but when I walked out with him in the dark he would growl and cower, after a few evenings I discovered why, he could see himself in the glass and thought that it was another dog!!

[Daisy]

Lizzie, your dog must have wondered who was following him every night. It's not something you can easily explain to a dog or cat, is it!

The other side of the little incident described above, and one which gave me more cause for thought was the disconnect between the children waiting for the bus. They must all have known each other, and they were all neighbours. They live a long way from the school so spend a lot of time on the bus together, but they totally ignored each other, not even standing close. They made me think of the silhouette figures of soldiers on a battleground. But they were young teens, surely a time when they should be talking to each other, having a laugh and taking in the world around them. I found it rather worrying. I know the jury's undecided on the issue of screen time, but sometimes I think essential to live in the real world.

This is rather a long article about the good and bad of youngsters' online world, but quite interesting.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c9d0l40v551o