{"id":8040,"date":"2014-09-23T11:57:24","date_gmt":"2014-09-23T10:57:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/whatsonni.com\/news\/?p=8040"},"modified":"2014-09-23T12:01:32","modified_gmt":"2014-09-23T11:01:32","slug":"are-we-too-%e2%80%98connected%e2%80%99-to-see-just-how-%e2%80%98disconnected%e2%80%99-we%e2%80%99ve-become","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/whatsonni.com\/news\/2014\/09\/are-we-too-%e2%80%98connected%e2%80%99-to-see-just-how-%e2%80%98disconnected%e2%80%99-we%e2%80%99ve-become\/","title":{"rendered":"Are we too \u2018Connected\u2019 to see just how \u2018Disconnected\u2019 we\u2019ve become?"},"content":{"rendered":"

The age of electronic connection through email and other social media such as, Facebook and Twitter has made it so easy to stay in touch that it\u2019s like having lots of penfriends all at once.<\/h1>\n

How easy it is to post a few words of greeting and short replies. No more letters, no more long landline telephone calls, no more calling round for a chat and now in some cases, why even send a birthday card whenever a Facebook message or Text or Tweet will do?<\/p>\n

However, whilst social networking is a great tool, there\u2019s a profound difference between an online social network and a real one.<\/p>\n

The number of people we call \u2018Friends\u2019 on Facebook may be big on quantity but what about quality, and is time spent online diminishing our opportunity for true social contact?<\/p>\n

Fundamentally technology and our use of it hasn\u2019t brought the true social relationships and connections that we all crave and need, in fact in many cases it has done the opposite leaving us feeling more disconnected than ever.<\/p>\n

\"Claire<\/a>
Claire Hughes, Founder, Soiree Society NI<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Local woman Claire Hughes\u2019 research has shown that this lack of opportunity for true social contact is a growing problem, particularly for those that are Unattached i.e. Single, Separated, Divorced or Widowed.<\/p>\n

Her solution is her new company Soir\u00e9e Society NI, an events company for unattached people, coined from the French word soir\u00e9e<\/em> meaning \u2018an informal but elegant evening gathering\u2019.<\/p>\n

Claire Hughes, founder of Soir\u00e9e Society NI states, <\/em><\/strong>\u201cWe are planning a fantastic range of events over the next 12 months. Our events offer members, across a range of ages, an opportunity to form real-life connections with like-minded people. It provides the solution for those who maybe don\u2019t know where to go to meet people, or don\u2019t have anyone single to go out with, or don\u2019t like the idea of organised or online dating, or who maybe simply want a new social element to their lives. Our company mantra is to provide \u2018Refreshingly Different\u2019 experiences\u201d <\/em><\/p>\n

To launch the company a free introductory event is being held in Cookstown on Thursday 25th<\/sup> September at Tullylagan House Hotel Cookstown at 8.00pm. The night will feature special guest Billy Dixon, one of the leading authorities and commentators on communication and team dynamics, who will entertain and inspire the audience with his topic \u2018Let\u2019s Get Engaged!\u2019 Afterwards there is the opportunity to meet and relax with new-found friends with music provided by singer-songwriter Paul Hughes.<\/p>\n

Due to popular demand, this event will also be repeated in Belfast on Tuesday 7th<\/sup> October at 8.00pm at Holohan\u2019s on The Barge, behind the Waterfront on the River Lagan. Holohan\u2019s offers a quirky cosy atmosphere for people to meet, mix and mingle, with Paul Hughes again providing the music to help \u2018rock the boat\u2019.<\/p>\n

Claire Hughes continues, \u201cOur \u2018Live, Laugh & Learn\u2019 theme is unique. By going back to basics, we aim to help people to develop true connections through conversation, laughter and fun\u2026.without online devices!<\/em><\/p>\n

So far, there has been good interest from both men and women, and we always welcome ideas for new events.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Places are filling up quickly so remember to register now to secure your place:<\/p>\n

www.soireesocietyni.co.uk\/events\/<\/a><\/p>\n

https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/SoireeSocietyNI<\/a> <\/em><\/p>\n

Whether you are looking for friendship, fun and maybe even love and romance: – set phones to silent, your status to busy and get ready to reconnect with Soir\u00e9e Society NI.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The age of electronic connection through email and other social media such as, Facebook and Twitter has made it so easy to stay in touch that it\u2019s like having lots of penfriends all at once. How easy it is to post a few words of greeting and short replies. No more letters, no more long … Continued<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/whatsonni.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8040"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/whatsonni.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/whatsonni.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/whatsonni.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/whatsonni.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8040"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/whatsonni.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8040\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8048,"href":"https:\/\/whatsonni.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8040\/revisions\/8048"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/whatsonni.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8040"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/whatsonni.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8040"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/whatsonni.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8040"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}