Texting is fine, but in-person communication is way better /Editor's Notebook

Little bits of life you notice sometimes go a long way, making you think about how things have changed over the years.

On a recent Saturday, I was heading into a restaurant when a mom and daughter walked out. The girl had her phone in hand, texting away with a scowl on her face while the woman was a few paces back by herself and didn’t appear in a happy mood. I don’t know the whole story there, but I wondered if communicating with someone on the phone took the place of talking with a parent in person.

I hope that wasn’t the case, but technology has definitely taken a front seat to important face-to-face conversations these days.

On the flipside, I recently witnessed a couple in their 70s or 80s sitting across from each other at another eatery and engaging in conversation and smiling while completing a crossword puzzle. I looked over with a grin and silently applauded these two.

Now, I fully embrace technology — and do a bit of texting myself (really, not that much) — but sometimes we’ve got to put the gadgets away and look each other in the eyes and appreciate that we have good people in our lives.

At the benefit concert I attended for Kenmore’s Doug Edge, who was diagnosed with leukemia and recently had a bone-marrow transplant, I don’t recall seeing hardly any texting going on while I was there. People were interacting with each other and embracing the evening of good friends and music. And if someone was texting, hopefully they were encouraging a friend to attend the event.

I know this probably won’t take, but I propose everyone have a personal day of trying not to text and give someone a real phone call or make time to visit with a friend in person.

I promise, it will be a fulfilling 24 hours.

ON THE MOVE

Come April 30, the Bothell-Kenmore Reporter will be moving to a new office in Totem Lake, sharing a space with the Kirkland Reporter. The new address is 11630 Slater Ave. N.E., suites 8-9.

We’ll no longer be situated in downtown Bothell, but we’ll still be covering the Northshore area to the fullest.

And thanks for reading our paper in print and online at www.bothell-reporter.com and www.kenmore-reporter.com.

Contact Bothell Reporter Editor Andy Nystrom at editor@bothell-reporter.com or 425-483-3732, ext. 5050.

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