Blue light blues

MANILA, Philippines - We’ve come a long way since the days when we lugged trolley bags filled with books to school. Nowadays, we don’t need to look further than our pockets to get all the information we need. Reading has been seamlessly integrated into everyone’s everyday lifestyle and it’s all thanks to the smartphone. With just a single tap, we get to have access to all kinds of reading matter, from e-books to news articles to informative threads (well, as along as we have good WiFi). But attaining information from our mobile devices isn’t as simple as reading a book in the corner of our room or a newspaper while having breakfast. Here are mobile reading mishaps that we just might be guilty of and what we can do about them.

Expectation: You browse Twitter for the latest news first thing in the morning so you can plan your day.

Reality: You end up browsing for hours and realize that you are now running late.

In the morning, you probably log in just to check important news like class suspensions. A few seconds later, you stumble upon a One Direction gif and the next thing you know, you’re deep into the Larry conspiracy theory. While social media makes it impossible for you to get through the day without knowing about the latest news, it also makes it hard for you to filter unrelated ones. It is a black hole of information, after all. It’s best to have a reading schedule or just stay focused on what you’re looking for at the moment. Don’t worry; you have plenty of time to keep up with President Duterte’s latest when you’re stuck in traffic.

Expectation: You develop better reading habits because you have access to more materials.

Reality: You end up reading less because your eyes hurt or you get a headache.

One of the first heartaches we experienced as kids happened at the bookstore. Nobody likes being put on waiting lists, especially for a book you really, really want. Alas, we discovered the wonderful world of e-books and e-magazines. Now, the titles that we used to wait months for or once needed traveling relatives to purchase from abroad are literally at our fingertips. We download all we want but in reality, having more material to read doesn’t necessarily mean we get to read more. On the contrary, we often end up reading less because of notable health-related concerns that come with always being on our phones. Think about how many screens you look at in a day and imagine how much damage the proximity and exposure can do to your eyes. Let’s not even get started on our bad mobile phone posture. A blue light screen protector or a pair of blue light protective glasses are a good start. You might even want to consider getting a ring handle to stop that phone from falling on your face or to simply keep it at a safe readable distance.

Expectation: You use every bit of free time to catch up with your reading list.

Reality: You end up getting distracted by other apps on your smartphone.

So you finally have time to catch up on your reading list. Whether you’re waiting in line for the UV Express or stuck in another payday Friday “carmageddon,” the in-between lull times are perfect for bringing out that e-book you’ve had for months now. But despite the life-saving multi-tasker that it is, the smartphone makes it hard to focus on long-form reading — or any attention-heavy task, in general. It’s great to have many reading options in our pockets. But one big pleasure of reading comes from being absorbed in a whole new literary world that lets you escape reality every once in a while. That’s kind of hard to do when there’s a notif for a new Werewolf game or a Pokemon Go lure module in your vicinity. You’ll have to put in extra effort to disconnect: turn off LTE, go on airplane mode, etc. Regardless of how tempting the other apps are, self-discipline can still get you to the ending of that e-book.

Expectation: You can easily share your favorite articles with your friends.

Reality: Your favorite articles easily get lost in the sea of other articles online.

There’s nothing quite like stumbling upon that Thought Catalog essay or Berlin Artparasite post that perfectly captures your feelings. In fact, there’s so much content you find share-worthy that it becomes hard to keep track. If you’re the type who likes to reread old favorites, it’s best to have some kind of virtual library. Sharing on your feed is one option. There are also apps like Pocket that make storing and sharing easier. It’s not the same as lending the physical copy of a book to your friends and writing notes on the side for discussion. (There has always been something so sentimental about that.) But, hey, at least now you can read the text all at the same time and chat about it in real time. You don’t even have to worry whether or not your personal copy finds its way back to you in good condition.