Sometimes I feel overwhelmed by technology. I write this in Digital Learning Day and the irony does not escape me.
I wonder how other people stay caught up and on the cutting edge?
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Wednesday, February 1, 2012
Friday, December 10, 2010
Laptopistan
Thoughts on Laptopistan
"Only Connect." -- E. M. Forester
I wonder what E.M. Forester would say today if he knew the ways in which his cry for less alienation and more humanity has been completely co-opted by the technical junkies of the 21st century?
An article in the Sunday NY Times, "Destination: Laptopistan" by David Sax is the essay I've been waiting for. You can read the article yourself by clicking here:
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/05/nyregion/05laptop.html
He points out the techfaux pas -- things such as speaking above a whisper or daring to address a comment to a fellow coffee-shop patron-- of this brave new world of isolation and 24/7 connection. Well, that's my response to what he's talking about, anyway.
And Sax is right. It's really not O.K. to talk to strangers anymore but not for the reasons that you might think. Whatever happened to cordial pleasantries--the ones that used to make us more connected to each other and aware of the existence of another human being? Last Saturday, as I sat down to wait for my sister to doctor her cup of coffee at a walk-up kiosk in a mall in Chapel Hill, I struck up a conversation with an elderly lady in a wheel chair. We chatted about Roses--the discount store, not the flower. (Yep--this mall actually has a Roses and it is a step back in time, let me tell you. They even have a "Health and Beauty Aids" section. Love it.) My point is that this lady and I talked. We had a conversation. I didn't pull out a cellphone and immediately start texting someone. She didn't bop to music streaming into her ears from discreet ear buds. We chatted. We made eye contact. We laughed. We identified with each other. I wondered about her health; why was she in a wheel chair? I didn't ask. I'll never see her again, probably. Days later I still remember her friendliness, her smile. You don't get that in Laptopistan.
"Only Connect." -- E. M. Forester
I wonder what E.M. Forester would say today if he knew the ways in which his cry for less alienation and more humanity has been completely co-opted by the technical junkies of the 21st century?
An article in the Sunday NY Times, "Destination: Laptopistan" by David Sax is the essay I've been waiting for. You can read the article yourself by clicking here:
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/05/nyregion/05laptop.html
He points out the techfaux pas -- things such as speaking above a whisper or daring to address a comment to a fellow coffee-shop patron-- of this brave new world of isolation and 24/7 connection. Well, that's my response to what he's talking about, anyway.
And Sax is right. It's really not O.K. to talk to strangers anymore but not for the reasons that you might think. Whatever happened to cordial pleasantries--the ones that used to make us more connected to each other and aware of the existence of another human being? Last Saturday, as I sat down to wait for my sister to doctor her cup of coffee at a walk-up kiosk in a mall in Chapel Hill, I struck up a conversation with an elderly lady in a wheel chair. We chatted about Roses--the discount store, not the flower. (Yep--this mall actually has a Roses and it is a step back in time, let me tell you. They even have a "Health and Beauty Aids" section. Love it.) My point is that this lady and I talked. We had a conversation. I didn't pull out a cellphone and immediately start texting someone. She didn't bop to music streaming into her ears from discreet ear buds. We chatted. We made eye contact. We laughed. We identified with each other. I wondered about her health; why was she in a wheel chair? I didn't ask. I'll never see her again, probably. Days later I still remember her friendliness, her smile. You don't get that in Laptopistan.
Monday, November 29, 2010
(re)Inspired by Jan
OK: so my friend Jan, whom I idolize on all sorts of levels, has started an amazing blog and her wit and wonderings have inspired me to reactivate my old blog. I am going to give this a try and see what happens. And I'm doing it RIGHT NOW even though I don't have a topic.
What if I wrote every day for a week? A month? A Y-E-A-R???? As someone who can't even remember to take a daily vitamin, this may be a problem.
Seems like I should have a theme. Feel like my students must feel when I give them something and then say "write."
Time management. That's my topic. I am not a good time manager. I never have been--just not wired that way. But am trying and even bought a book about being a good tm'er--which, of course, I haven't managed my time well enough to read yet. But have skimmed it. Maybe if I had less junk in my life I'd be better? Too many distrations and all that? But I like all my crazy stuff in my study like the shelf of warthogs or the Revel Memorial display. And what about the old pictures section? This stuff matters because it's all about markers of my identity. It's not the things -- it's what they represent. I think if they were gone I'd forget who I am. No, not who I am but who I was. That seems real important.
That's it for now.
What if I wrote every day for a week? A month? A Y-E-A-R???? As someone who can't even remember to take a daily vitamin, this may be a problem.
Seems like I should have a theme. Feel like my students must feel when I give them something and then say "write."
Time management. That's my topic. I am not a good time manager. I never have been--just not wired that way. But am trying and even bought a book about being a good tm'er--which, of course, I haven't managed my time well enough to read yet. But have skimmed it. Maybe if I had less junk in my life I'd be better? Too many distrations and all that? But I like all my crazy stuff in my study like the shelf of warthogs or the Revel Memorial display. And what about the old pictures section? This stuff matters because it's all about markers of my identity. It's not the things -- it's what they represent. I think if they were gone I'd forget who I am. No, not who I am but who I was. That seems real important.
That's it for now.
Monday, May 11, 2009
Bumper Stickers: Jesus Was a Liberal
I really like bumperstickers. They're a means of self-expression--a way to make a statement and show people what you stand for. Too many bumperstickers on your car, however, are a problem. You need to know how to edit--how to apply Coco Chanel's admonition that "less is more."
Take my car, for instance. I love this car and plan to keep it until it is a "classic." As a '98, it very nearly is. I have a few choice, well-placed bumper stickers on the back of my car. I shall now describe them as they would appear to you if you were stuck behind me, fuming in Charlotte rush hour traffic.
Beginning with the back window, actually, bottom left corner, you would behold two stickers. One says "Proud to be a Democrat" and features a jumping donkey. Self-explanatory. Just below it is a tattered yet much loved sticker in the shape of a Georgia license tag that says, "ALMN BROS." If I have to explain this to you then the point will be lost--just buy The Road Goes on Forever (Allman Bros.) and you'll understand. That takes care of the window. Now follow me to the bumper.
On the right side is a "Coexist" sticker, the letters of which are fashioned to represent various religions, etc. (Interesting side bar: I love this message so much that I attempted to propagandize my office door at the university. The sticker was up for only a few days before a narrowminded miscreant tore it off! I replaced it with this message: "You can tear off my 'Coexist' sticker but you can't stop religious tolerance." No one has taken that. Yet.)
On the left side is my Obama sticker--possibly irritating to some Republicans-- but just to the right of that is the bumper sticker that generates the real disapproving looks. It reads: JESUS WAS A LIBERAL. I can't tell you how many times I have seen people glancing at my bumper and then shaking their heads in disgust as they walk away. I can only surmise it is a response to this shocking sentiment about Jesus.
Maybe words such as "liberal" are just too fraught with political ideology to allow for serious consideration in today's culture. So why is it on my car? I posted it quite deliberately with two kinds of "readers" in mind: those who would crucify us liberals as "unchristian" and those who aren't sure what to believe when it comes to Christianity but who have been scared away by the narrowminded "interpreters" of the bible. Yes, I posted this bumper sticker to encourage people to think and to question, for themselves, what it might mean to them to consider a claim that Jesus was a liberal. He was. Jesus challenged the government, befriended the marginalized, and urged at least 12 guys to drop everything (families, jobs) and follow him.
Not only was he a liberal but he was a rebel. Oh, that gives me an idea for a new bumper sticker: a head shot of James Dean and a head shot of Jesus. The message could be . . . what? Rebels with Cause(s)? Only the good die young?
Take my car, for instance. I love this car and plan to keep it until it is a "classic." As a '98, it very nearly is. I have a few choice, well-placed bumper stickers on the back of my car. I shall now describe them as they would appear to you if you were stuck behind me, fuming in Charlotte rush hour traffic.
Beginning with the back window, actually, bottom left corner, you would behold two stickers. One says "Proud to be a Democrat" and features a jumping donkey. Self-explanatory. Just below it is a tattered yet much loved sticker in the shape of a Georgia license tag that says, "ALMN BROS." If I have to explain this to you then the point will be lost--just buy The Road Goes on Forever (Allman Bros.) and you'll understand. That takes care of the window. Now follow me to the bumper.
On the right side is a "Coexist" sticker, the letters of which are fashioned to represent various religions, etc. (Interesting side bar: I love this message so much that I attempted to propagandize my office door at the university. The sticker was up for only a few days before a narrowminded miscreant tore it off! I replaced it with this message: "You can tear off my 'Coexist' sticker but you can't stop religious tolerance." No one has taken that. Yet.)
On the left side is my Obama sticker--possibly irritating to some Republicans-- but just to the right of that is the bumper sticker that generates the real disapproving looks. It reads: JESUS WAS A LIBERAL. I can't tell you how many times I have seen people glancing at my bumper and then shaking their heads in disgust as they walk away. I can only surmise it is a response to this shocking sentiment about Jesus.
Maybe words such as "liberal" are just too fraught with political ideology to allow for serious consideration in today's culture. So why is it on my car? I posted it quite deliberately with two kinds of "readers" in mind: those who would crucify us liberals as "unchristian" and those who aren't sure what to believe when it comes to Christianity but who have been scared away by the narrowminded "interpreters" of the bible. Yes, I posted this bumper sticker to encourage people to think and to question, for themselves, what it might mean to them to consider a claim that Jesus was a liberal. He was. Jesus challenged the government, befriended the marginalized, and urged at least 12 guys to drop everything (families, jobs) and follow him.
Not only was he a liberal but he was a rebel. Oh, that gives me an idea for a new bumper sticker: a head shot of James Dean and a head shot of Jesus. The message could be . . . what? Rebels with Cause(s)? Only the good die young?
Friday, May 8, 2009
Friendofmusilm
Subtitle: With "friends" like this . . . .
My husband forwarded me a Youtube video (which was forwarded to him--www.youtube.com/watch?v=6-3X5hIFXYU). It was posted by FriendofMuslim but it's all about how Mulims are taking over the world!!! Run!! Hide!!! Put the horses in the barn!! And, give me a break. At best, this is zenophobia. At worst, this is racism.
What irks me the most about this post--and others like it--is how such racists try to obscure their messages of hate with sugary coats of Christianity. As a Christian, it really burns me up to watch this kind of hate-inspired propoganda especially when it uses Christianity to further its wrongheaded message.
I couldn't read the "sources" from which this info was taken on this video--the print was too small.
A credible post? No. A friend of Muslim? Hardly.
My husband forwarded me a Youtube video (which was forwarded to him--www.youtube.com/watch?v=6-3X5hIFXYU). It was posted by FriendofMuslim but it's all about how Mulims are taking over the world!!! Run!! Hide!!! Put the horses in the barn!! And, give me a break. At best, this is zenophobia. At worst, this is racism.
What irks me the most about this post--and others like it--is how such racists try to obscure their messages of hate with sugary coats of Christianity. As a Christian, it really burns me up to watch this kind of hate-inspired propoganda especially when it uses Christianity to further its wrongheaded message.
I couldn't read the "sources" from which this info was taken on this video--the print was too small.
A credible post? No. A friend of Muslim? Hardly.
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