Take a walk to your local tourist attraction. Look around, look up, what do you see? You probably see a few people lost, staring down at a map. You may spot a few folks using big hand gestures to try to communicate in a different language. Above all, you can definitely see people taking pictures. Lots and lots of pictures… But something stands out.
The camaraderie created by asking a complete stranger to take a picture of you and making a new best friend is gone. No longer are people just using their hands/stands to take pictures; that would be so mid 2014. No, now you see an ocean of Selfie Sticks. SELFIE STICKS! First of all, the name alone is enough to make anyone who isn’t a sorority girl cringe with disappointment. Did you know “selfie” is not only officially in the dictionary, but it was voted word of the year for 2013? (sorry for destroying your faith in humanity). Secondly, It’s sad to say that you’re not only seeing it at tourist attractions, you see it in coffee shops, at the mall, at a park, they’re everywhere. Is all of this really necessary?
We’ve been successfully taking pictures since 1839, why now have we developed this intense need to take every picture with our phones strapped to a stick? I’m not going to be illogical about this, I do see how in some instances it really does come in handy: maybe if you’re trying to get a shot of something too large/far away, or your profession is film, maybe you do extreme sports (which was the original use of the Selfie Stick). But in a coffee shop taking a selfie with your grande, iced, soy milk, sugar-free, vanilla latte, or everything else for that matter? I’ve even seen people taking selfies while driving. I would say these scenarios are a bit unnecessary and even dangerous. Not to mention it can be an invasion of privacy if you’re taking pictures in a place full of people from that height. It attracts attention and can make people feel very uncomfortable.
Hey, at least you’re not taking pictures with a Selfie Shoe, or a Selfie Brush and you’re staying away from taking “butt” selfies with the Belfie Stick. For that I thank you. Still, It’s bad enough that we are on our phones 24/7 and now we need to take pictures of ourselves 24/7. This narcissistic behavior must be stopped before we become a world of people who live life through a screen, rather than reality; that’s if we’re not already there. Recently a story came out about someone taking smiley selfies at the sight of a tragic blast in New York. This is what I’m talking about people!
Some museums have already banned Selfie Sticks and now even Coachella and Lollapalooza have put a stop to the madness at the events. But I’m not sure this will derail those selfie fiends. Excessive Selfie Stick users, you’re making yourselves look bad. Please, if you’re not going to stop, at least use discretion. Your friends will be able to go on with their lives without seeing a far shot picture of your salad. Enjoy life, there’s so much to see. Stop and smell the roses… Heck, stop and actually look at them from a different view other than your camera phone, I promise it’s so much better that way.