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drcode

You almost never see a clock anywhere

except in places where people aren't allowed to check their phones

(such as in schools or certain types of work spaces or a therapist office)

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Our local mall has an 8-metre high 20-ton clock sitting in the middle of it:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hornsby_Water_Clock

The enclosing Westfield shopping centre is in two halves, and the clock is between them.

My god, what a glorious monstrosity! I live in Sydney, I may just have to take the train to Hornsby to see this farrago in person!

'Tis a sight to behold.

And at railway stations, although there are somehow never enough clocks at railway stations.

I suspect those may be to make sure passengers don't have an excuse for missing the train.

I don't have a phone, and it's always an interesting exercise to either try to find a clock, or ask someone for the time.

Thankfully there is no cell reception at our local ski mountain, so nobody carries a phone, and clocks are prominent.

There's a thing called a wristwatch that solves your problem.

Why not just get a watch at that point?

not whimsical and quirky enough

Anecdotally I wear a watch and the ski mountain is one place where it's a lot more convenient to glance at the clocks the bottom of the lifts.

I hate the feeling of something on my wrist. I used to have a pocket watch, but once cell phones became pocket sized I switched.

I am pretty certain of two things

(1) many still carry a phone despite not having cell reception because it is convenient and many use their phones to take pictures (2) many have an Apple watch/other smartwatch/dumbwatch on their wrist

I would still carry my phone into a place I already know to not have reception. I would want to check my messages when the phone does get signal and someone may have been trying to contact me. Also, it is reasonably secure on my person. Leaving it in a car or locker increases the chance it will get lost or stolen.

People still carry their phones on airplanes, even though we're not even allowed to turn on the cell antenna. Although now we have onboard wifi.

I assure you very few locals carry their phone at the ski resort.

They're easy to break in a fall, the cold kills the battery, and the feeling of freedom from not having one is magical.

>Although now we have onboard wifi.

Yeah, for a (steep) price. To me, it's generally useless.

But still I keep my phone with me for all the other reasons you state. When I touch down, I'll probably want to send messages to people that I've arrived safely, etc.

This article might have made more sense a few decades ago. They're no longer considered as expected as they once were

but also... my local mall, here and where I used to live, both have clocks

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