Shhh…

Image by NazarethCollege via Flickr

I originally wrote a post about getting lessons in becoming the crotchety old woman who yells at kids to get off her lawn. Except, instead of yelling at kids to get off the lawn, I was grumbling about the twenty-somethings who spoke on their cell phones in the middle of the library, which is supposed to be  a cell phone free area. I bemoaned the end of places where you were expected to be quiet and respect the silence of others working.

Now, after I wrote this post, and scheduled it, someone came up to where I was working — a guy I thought was long gone — and started talking to me. To my credit, I did quickly log out of the computer, and hurry him to one of the lounge areas where talking was allowed so we did not completely disturb the people working around us.

Instead of ranty post about the disrespectful use of technology, instead, I got yet another lesson in karma. It was deserved.

 

Rebottling the Genie

The other day I learned many people wish they could un-invent Facebook. It’s not just that they think Facebook is a waste of time, or takes too much time, or is silly; they wish it had never been created. I can’t say that I blame them. Even if you don’t post the minutiae of your own life, reviewing and commenting on your friends’ posts, in combination with the myriad social networking and one-minute games, makes it a time suck. Plus, it detracts from real human interaction. Time spent reviewing your friends’ status is time that could be spent with family and friends in meat-space.

I was a late adopter of Facebook, but I have to admit, it does provide a service. It has allowed me to reconnect with far-flung relatives (oh, wait – I’m the far-flung one), and know when friends’ are facing a true personal crisis. It allows those same friends to provide all their well-wishers with updates without having to field a thousand and one phone calls. Outside of trying to unravel mysteries at the Time Society, it does fulfill a purpose. Even so, there are times I do consider deleting my account, because of the time suck issue.

Still, I know, there’s no putting the genie back in the bottle. We do not un-invent technology. We build upon it. Electricity, horseless carriages, nuclear weapons, cellular technology, and Facebook are all here to stay. That is, until something newer and more capable of performing those functions comes along. Telephones replaced telegrams. Cell phones replaced land lines. E-mail replaced letters. Facebook and Twitter replaced e-mail. Text messaging replaced phone calls. It’s the cycle of invention. And when whatever replaces Facebook occurs, we will long for the simpler, easier days of Facebook when human interaction was more personal.

That, too, is part of the cycle of invention. We long for whatever is now obsolete, even as we run headlong toward the newer, faster, supposedly better shiny without considering what it might cost or what it will require us to leave behind. And, even as we long for the past, we can never return to what was. Not really. Because, ways lead on to ways, and it’s doubtful we will ever go back again.

Related articles

• Social Media: Friend or Foe? (marwafarouk.wordpress.com)
• Social Network – a post from the past (ruthturner.wordpress.com)
• Facebook is weirder than you think. (dinosur.wordpress.com)

Worms

This started out to be a post telling you about how I learned listening to a good friend rant can make me feel better when I’m in a pissy, self-deprecating mood. In the process of writing it, I did a Google search for the lyrics to the “everybody hates me, nobody loves me, might as well eat worms” song. Google, naturally, led me to YouTube, where I discovered a happy little rendition of the “might as well eat worms” song showcasing scenes from the movie adaptation of How to Eat Fried Worms by Thomas Rockwell.

After watching it, I noticed YouTube was recommending Alice Coopers “Nobody Likes Me,” wherein we learn the singer’s friends truly do hate him, even his dog Spot. After that little downer, I decided to go back to hunting for the true worm song, and clicked on a video simply labeled as “The Worm Song.” It turned out to be a completely different and quirky, song. Fortunately, through the miracle of modern technology, I don’t have to describe it for you. You can see it yourself.

Go ahead. Watch it. I’ll wait.

See what I mean by quirky? And different? One might even call it odd. Still, through it, I learned not only that worms have difficulty achieving self-gratification, but also that whenever you bring together a group of creative-minded people, weird things will happen. And, no matter what you do in life, those people will never forget the weird things you sometimes came up with together.

I learned, true friends, will never let you escape who you are. Not really.