It’s 3:04 p.m. and I’m waiting for my friend at Starbucks whom I agreed to meet at 3 p.m. I’ve probably refreshed my Facebook newsfeed eight times. There are no new posts about people getting into grad school, no one has just become engaged and there are no new links to lists like “30 Adorable Puppies That Will Get You Through Finals.” The three people whose texts I just answered still haven’t replied. Now I’m on the weather app looking at the hour-by-hour forecast for Belize City. To an onlooker, my vigorous reloading might look like I’m anticipating a message containing active nuclear launch codes.

Then I realize that I’m wasting time, and I try to stop — until I look around and see plenty of other people, standing alone, doing the same thing.

Since catching myself killing my downtime on my phone, I have been guilty of doing this much less often. But I also know that I’m not alone in this “first world” habit. I’ve had friends refresh Instagram whenever there is a lull in a conversation. If I’m having lunch with someone and get up to grab a drink, more often than not I come back to find that they have passed the two minutes by scrolling through emails and checking QuizUp notifications. I work at a cafe where a lot of people come for a quick bite to eat, and nearly everyone sitting alone is flipping through their contacts, photos, messages or their application of choice over a sandwich and soup.

Is this out of a necessity to be wired constantly, stimulated by something all the time? Or do people not want to appear like they are alone?

With countless ways to connecting with people via smartphone, it’s as if I feel an obligation to myself to inform the public that no, actually, I’m not by myself, I’m just waiting for someone. Oh look, in fact I am texting with them right now. When I observe customers peering over a forkful of salad to look at their phones at work, they seem preoccupied with the need to send a message that yes, they are eating alone, but not actually because they are clearly still communicating with people.

I’ve also found that with this territory comes an equal number of articles, blog posts and lists of different ways and reasons why it is important for us to unplug and disconnect. Everyone is busy — but surely it seems easy to build in these pockets of “turning off” during the five or 10 minutes spent waiting for a friend who is running late, or while the person you are eating with takes a bathroom break.

It is important to appreciate and take in these moments of stillness. Of course, there are time-sensitive emails, urgent messages and phone calls that come up. But if you find yourself waiting alone, enjoy the concept of waiting, patiently.

If you’re going to eat alone, eat alone. Enjoy your sandwich. It’s winter and your soup is getting cold.

Leanna Smith is a Weinberg sophomore. She can be reached at [email protected]. If you want to respond publicly to this column, send a Letter to the Editor to [email protected].