Soulful contact with a less hectic past for the ultra mobile

My classmate is one of the movers and shakers of the young generation of Kazakhstan. He arrived to meet me, dressed in a suit and permanently attached to a mobile phone and a blackberry - simultaneously talking on one and typing on the other. He is extraordinarily busy and sports the kind of mobile lifestyle that many in the US talk about as maddening (here it's seen as absolutely, incredibly, insane). When asked about friends, he laughs and tells me that he sees his family once or twice a week... friends? non-work-related friends? not very often.

As a typical mobile professional, he talks of the Internet and its capabilities as perfect tools for perfecting his work and for increasing efficiency. He does not need an office - just a phone, a blackberry, his laptop and wifi. The latter can be gained through the phone if necessary. Everything, even here in Kazakhstan can be purchased, oragnized and delivered via the Internet right from his office for a small fee. "Its all about developing further trust in the Internet - as more people trust the internet with their financial information, more services can be created."

He uses FaceBook, but never actually accesses the site. FB is a way to instantly communicate with his overseas colleagues and everything is done via blackberry - it looks exactly like any other IM. He is not interested in accessing the site itself, updating his own status or browsing someone elses', looking up something unrelated to work there. The very reason here to use FB is that there are times when there is no point in calling, you can just send a quick note without going through the motions of cultural pleasantries. Skype is also useful because it's important to see facial expressions when making deals. No matter how I try to turn the conversation toward personal contacts, we come right back to business and efficiency. There is no time for planning or organizing outings - if something happens and he is notified, he will make an effort to join in. Otherwise, it's work and family. Even odnoklassniki, a site for friends, is for him also a site where there is a forum of his family, where they exchange messages on the account of too hectic a life to meet otherwise.

Yet at the end of our conversation, this ultra-mobile professional softens - odnoklassniki.ru is important - it's nice to know people remember you, it's important to find lost contacts ... He gets a sudden forlorn look on his face and then tells me how pleasant it is to check on old flames and contacts from college and high school. To him, there is value that translates to some kind of soul in managing to keep however faint ties with people who aren't part of his hectic, ultra-mobile life.