I had new year's eve dinner with my family. I tend to never make a
big deal out of new year's, but it was nice for my grandmother
especially to have people to be with. We dined at a hotel
restaurant. At the table next to ours sat a woman in her mid-20s,
alone. She wore a red dress, and had put some time into looking
nice for the evening. I had assumed she was waiting for her
companion to arrive, but then I saw that her table was set for one.

She dined alone.

At one point during the meal, and without any attempt at hiding
what she was doing, she was looking at pictures of men on her smart
phone. I couldn't tell if they were pictures of some celebrity or
other, or simply the results of an image search for 'good-looking
guys'.

Waiting for dessert, she was looking at pictures of diamond rings.

I couldn't help but feel at least a bit sorry for someone who makes
occasion enough of new year's to spend the evening at an up-market
restaurant, but who has no-one to share the occasion with.

Should we be grateful that a smart phone can provide a welcome
distraction at times like this, or is it a completely ineffective
remedy against loneliness?