Cells

I have a lot more time now to observe, and living in a town, the creature to which I have ready access is my fellow human. One of the most distinctive features of our kind is the polyvalent and beautiful hand. Watching it in action is a joy, and because of the wonderful technological advances in communications, I get to see this quite a bit. Everyone has his/her own relationship with his/her mobile phone. It seems that the older the communicant, the more likely he is to use the phone as a phone. I noticed this while waiting for a concert the other evening, which as usual alas, was attended mostly by the retirement set. Here’s someone who didn’t even make a call, just used her device as a substitute for worry beads, turning it over and over in her nervous hands, soothed by the cool smoothness.

I also noticed that the older folks tended to use both hands, one to hold, one to type (usually not the thumb), while those who grew up with mobiles, type with their thumbs (one or both).

On a windy day (the Mistral in Aix is notorious), you may need the support of a nearby platane to hold you steady as you type

Here’s the single-handed technique, freeing the other hand to stay warm inside winter gloves:

One’s mobile phone is not merely an impersonal tool, but a tiny accessory that we use to tell others about ourselves. What model, which brand? The iPhone users flaunt their expensive devices—here’s a BCBG* woman with her ironed jeans, arty ring, crisp blouse & suit jacket and 5C—

but the Samsungs hold their own with the younger set, who gird themselves with their hoodies, puffy parkas, and other less expensive phones:

The mobile phone accessory does not have to be in use to project the image one desires. This virile & confident young man holds his device right in front of his crotch, thereby advertising his endowments for the girls who were surrounding him at the time.

This girl, with her androgynous camouflage and unladylike pose, does the same:

I take the bus from Aix to nearby St Cannat a lot, and the passengers all optimise their time in transit by texting most of the time.

Of course, other than staying touch, there the music function too…

Sometimes this gets complicated…

We all regret our dependence on these things, unable to pass 10 minutes without posting or checking in. Here’s someone at the same concert I mentioned above, hopefully tweeting how fantastic the quartet was.

*BCBG “Bon Chic, Bon Gens” refering to a bourgeois, prim, look