The Urge to Play With My Phone

I posted this to my private journal just now:

I’ve noticed that iOS 17 has removed a lot of friction from the process of un-hiding and re-installing old app purchases. That’s a problem for me, as I’m prone to moments of weakness when I feel the urge to lose myself in a game. Keeping the phone away from my bedside at night would help, but I need to tamp down the occasional impulse to pull out my phone and do something with it to fill an idle moment.

I deliberately have my phone face-down on the desk, muted most of the time, and try to keep it out of my hand(s) when I’m doing things elsewhere in the house. But I do need to have it around so family can contact me. A ‘dumb-phone’ would solve most of those issues, but I do have some good uses for a smartphone — it makes checking the weather and doing online banking super easy, and it’s the nearest camera I have.

I’m probably doing better than most, I know. But it’s still a struggle, in part because phone makers want us using them as much as possible, which is reflected (pun intended) in their design.