I only have two hours.

Someone made that comment last year and it stuck with me. With all the ways we now have to spend our time on media, (TV shows, online webisodes, countless “DVDs of season 1 now available,” virals, blogs, mags, etc.), we only really have two hours to enjoy any one of those things fully. At least I do. Can’t read a book, watch a DVD or listen to an album all at once. Can you?

I may do some of those things, like listening to Jon Stewart while posting or surfing, but when it comes to setting aside a solid block of time to enjoy something, I ain’t multitasking. Otherwise, isn’t it really the equivalent of speedreading–material skimmed but never really enjoyed. I’ll go crazy at home watching a rented DVD if the phone rings. (As if the caller should’ve known I waited three monthes to sit down and watch the unrated director’s cut of the latest disposable slasher flick sans interruption.) My kids? They’ll talk to their friends while still watching the movie.

The next Pepsi generation may IM a few friends while texting others, all the while listening to iTunes with VH1 celebreality shows on in the background and ignore the plea for help with the groceries, but that’s not the same thing. (Hell, I can do all those things.) I just wonder how this fragmented attention media deficit syndrome will affect them later in life though. Considering they were raised with far more‘media choices’ than I ever was, will they want to spend time later enjoying ever-shortening movies or books without doing five other things at the same time? Will they be able to?

Will they even care?