« Connecting the Unconnected | Main | Norms »

Flow

This morning's office is tucked behind gate 25 of Helsinki's Vantaa airport. The morning rush hour has tapered off leaving me time to catch up on emails, read a stack of research papers (from the Mobile HCI Conference since you ask) and people watch before my flight departs. Or just listen. A Brazillian lady next to me lies on her back her body contorted so that she only takes up two seats, her laptop pressed awkwardly to her face like an oversized clamshell. She's trying to conduct a VOIP call without disturbing the rest of us. Despite her best efforts in the current calm of the airport we can hear her every word. I don't begrudge her desire for connectivity with what I hope is a loved other and anyway the gentle lilt of her Portugese is like a lullaby. When the call is over I glance at her desktop wallpaper which shows her hugging a portly middle aged man.

From where I sit I can observe a clock situated at the base of Vantaa's observation tower. The angle of the clock face excludes it being read by anyone other than passengers who happen to glance out a few meters of where I sit and I can't help feeling that there's a wonderful redundancy to its existence. Much like the function aspects of wrist watches and clocks everywhere. One of yesterday's interviewers mentioned that low end wrist watch sales were being decimated because people were turning to their mobile phone to tell the time. A couple of year's ago I remember interviewing a student in Tokyo, a watch on his wrist, his mobile phone in his back right pocket. The topic of the interview was what, how and why people carry what they carry, and as part of the procedure protocol, almost as an aside we asked the interviewee whether they had the time simply to observe whether he would glance at his watch or reach for his phone. His hand instinctively went for his back pocket. Consider for a moment time it takes to glance at his wrist versus reaching into his back pocket, grab the device and flip open his phone. Efficiency dictates that he glance at his wrist. But the habit of checking his mobile phone for incoming communication is extended to include checking the time. Watching flow in action is a wonderful thing. Unless of course you make wrist watches.

I wear a watch - a Suunto impulsively picked up on a business trip here in Finland. Its main purpose is as a lifestyle statement - an indicator to others and a reminder to myself that I'd rather be out there than in here. My wish will soon come true - there are two good peaks within a couple of hours drive of Tehran - Mt. Damavand and Mt Darband Sar (5671 and 4000+ m respectively) and after 5 straight weeks on the road I'll be in need of some fresh air.

Today however the only exercise I'm likely to get is the long walk between gates at Frankfurt airport. A chance at least to catch up with verwante.

Writing from Helsinki | October 6, 2006 | Permalink