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Cloudy skies and flurries in the forecast for the Wyoming Valley

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Pa. couple charged with using teen as drug-deal collateral

<p>If it is true that the eyes are the window to the soul, I am convinced we live in a soul-less society.</p><p>When was the last time you were in a mall, elevator, bus depot or train station and you could see someone&#8217;s eyes?</p><p>Yeah, me neither.</p><p>It is because everyone has their faces buried in their damn smartphones.</p><p>I am amazed at the number of people who gaze lovingly into their phones or at the number of people who cannot go more than 10 seconds without looking at them.</p><p>Even more amazing are the knuckleheads who stare into their phones while walking &#8211; other pedestrians and motorists be damned.</p><p>And forget about people who drive</p><p>and look at their smartphones. They are candidates for a Darwin Award.</p><p>I mention all of this because of Levi Felix, who died recently at the age of 32.</p><p>Perhaps, like me, you never heard of him. He was the founder of something called Digital Detox whose mission was &#8220;to create more mindful, meaningful and balanced lives, both online and off.&#8221;</p><p>The organization sponsored Camp Grounded, a summer camp for adults to get unplugged from technology. Attendees turned in their electronic devices and were expected &#8211; gasp &#8211; to have conversations with others in real life, or IRL as they say in digital parlance.</p><p>Campers also had choices of activities, such as crafts, archery, swimming and capture-the-flag.</p><p>Felix said he wanted to see &#8220;more people taking more time to reflect and experience what they&#8217;re doing instead of sharing it or Instagramming it or posting it on the internet.&#8221;</p><p>There was something so simple and profound about what he preached; it really resonated with me.</p><p>For my generation, the electronic devil was the &#8220;Boob Tube,&#8221; aka television, which we were warned would turn our brains to Jell-O if we watched too much of it.</p><p>I grant you there was a lot of bad television I watched as a kid but we also had a rule when I was growing up: No TV at dinner. That was a time reserved to be together as a family. Period.</p><p>Today, if you go to a restaurant, it is stunning to see how many people are seated around a table and they are all looking at their smartphones! It&#8217;s like they are allergic to talking to one another.</p><p>I know I am guilty of spending too much time on my phone, but being a newsman, it is an occupational hazard.</p><p>For others, it is an addiction in which they get a little shot of dopamine to their brains every time a notification comes from Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or someone texts. (Does anyone actually even use their smartphones to call anyone anymore anyway?)</p><p>At a time when we face deep cultural, racial and political divisions, it feels like the need to have civil face-to-face conversations is more important than ever.</p><p>If I can paraphrase a popular &#8216;60s expression, I think it&#8217;s time we turn off our electronic devices, drop our screens and tune into each other.</p><style>
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<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Christopher Mele</p><p>Mele&#8217;s Musings</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Christopher Mele is married and dad of two sons and two stepchildren. His childhood in the Bronx defined his friendships, which endure today. A career newsman, writer and editor, the Lords Valley resident is glad to share stories and insights about the challenges that the modern-day middle-aged guy faces. Reach Chris at seaosprey22@gmail.com.</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Mele’s Musings: Take a minute to sign off and unplug