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matrilThis is the first of a whole series of parodies of those irritating Mac/PC commericals. Gut-bustingly funny. Then it branches out from parodying into playing around with the premise of comic book characters hanging out together and discussing the successes and failures of their movies. It is hilarious, just the sort of geeky, in-joke sort of stuff that I love. Then, just when I'm crying with laughter, it takes a surprisingly deep and serious turn that is unexpectedly moving. Anything examining the anguish of Superman finding his place among humans is just plain awesome in my book. :D Clearly made by a genuine fan of these characters (who else would have so many action figures on hand? ;)
I'm very glad for technology. I like camping, but I like coming back to civilzation. I'm not going to settle down in a cabin in the woods with no running water or electricity. Having said that, however, I want to reflect on the ways that technology can make us kind of miserable. I've had this on my mind because I've been wasting a whole lot of time on the Internet lately, just out of plain old boredom, searching for something to give me instantaneous entertainment. And I need to step back and get my priorities.
We live in a society of quick fixes. Food, clothing, all other necessities, are available ready-made to purchase at affordable prices. We don't have to sow and tend and harvest our own grain; we don't have to shear sheep, card wool, spin it into thread....you get the idea. And I am deeply grateful for this. However, it has put us in the mindset that we shouldn't have to wait long or work hard for anything. And this is not entirely healthy. To reference my own bad example, since we moved to our new place we no longer have free cable, so if I want to watch TV shows I need to watch them on the Internet, usually the next day if I want to be nice and wait to watch them with my husband. And one day in the midst of grumbling in my head about this I thought "You have got to be kidding me. Am I really complaining about the fact that I have entertainment produced by some stranger sent directly to my home whenever I want it, for a minimum cost?" Seriously. We've come to think we need a constant flow of happiness. No wonder so many people become addicts, seeking that elusive state of unbroken pleasure. They're not going to find it. And they shouldn't expect it.
Phones and e-mail have made communication so much more efficient, and I'd never want to do away with them (though I hate cell phones with an irrational passion). But they've become so efficient that that has become the sole purpose - making quick and easy contact. We play phone tag all day long, but do we really say anything? We forward emails without a second thought, hardly bothering to check if the latest rumor floating around the Internet has any credence. In true substance it amounts to empty air. I like letters. They're slow, yes, and inefficient, and not very practical when you can use email or call someone. I just love getting a physical object, though, knowing that it came from the hands of the person who wrote it, knowing that they took the time to write it out, put it in a envelope and stick a stamp on it. :shrugs: Sentimental, perhaps, but consider this. It's so easy to send an email, or type up a hasty response to something on IM or a message board, that people can put no thought into it at all, and end up offending someone or being misunderstood, and then they get miffed and respond in kind, and flame wars rise up, and everyone's angry for no reason at all. I'm not saying in the halcyon days of letter writing this never happened, but there is something inherently problematic in instantaneous communication, if you're not careful about it. And people are seldom careful.
Human contact is so sanitized on the Internet. This is coming from someone who cringes at human contact, hates small talk, and frequently displays hermit-like tendencies. But even I can see the warning signs. People can present themselves in such idealized or exaggerated ways; they can leave out the less pleasant parts, or they can become complete caricatures of nastiness. Above all, they're not real. Granted, I've had some very nice interactions online, and I try to make myself as genuine as possible, but it's not precisely me. It's Internet me. Ironic that I'm posting all of this on the Internet. It's just some things I've been realizing as I've been trying to cut back my computer time and live a real, genuine life. Don't know how well it's going just yet.
I'm very glad for technology. I like camping, but I like coming back to civilzation. I'm not going to settle down in a cabin in the woods with no running water or electricity. Having said that, however, I want to reflect on the ways that technology can make us kind of miserable. I've had this on my mind because I've been wasting a whole lot of time on the Internet lately, just out of plain old boredom, searching for something to give me instantaneous entertainment. And I need to step back and get my priorities.
We live in a society of quick fixes. Food, clothing, all other necessities, are available ready-made to purchase at affordable prices. We don't have to sow and tend and harvest our own grain; we don't have to shear sheep, card wool, spin it into thread....you get the idea. And I am deeply grateful for this. However, it has put us in the mindset that we shouldn't have to wait long or work hard for anything. And this is not entirely healthy. To reference my own bad example, since we moved to our new place we no longer have free cable, so if I want to watch TV shows I need to watch them on the Internet, usually the next day if I want to be nice and wait to watch them with my husband. And one day in the midst of grumbling in my head about this I thought "You have got to be kidding me. Am I really complaining about the fact that I have entertainment produced by some stranger sent directly to my home whenever I want it, for a minimum cost?" Seriously. We've come to think we need a constant flow of happiness. No wonder so many people become addicts, seeking that elusive state of unbroken pleasure. They're not going to find it. And they shouldn't expect it.
Phones and e-mail have made communication so much more efficient, and I'd never want to do away with them (though I hate cell phones with an irrational passion). But they've become so efficient that that has become the sole purpose - making quick and easy contact. We play phone tag all day long, but do we really say anything? We forward emails without a second thought, hardly bothering to check if the latest rumor floating around the Internet has any credence. In true substance it amounts to empty air. I like letters. They're slow, yes, and inefficient, and not very practical when you can use email or call someone. I just love getting a physical object, though, knowing that it came from the hands of the person who wrote it, knowing that they took the time to write it out, put it in a envelope and stick a stamp on it. :shrugs: Sentimental, perhaps, but consider this. It's so easy to send an email, or type up a hasty response to something on IM or a message board, that people can put no thought into it at all, and end up offending someone or being misunderstood, and then they get miffed and respond in kind, and flame wars rise up, and everyone's angry for no reason at all. I'm not saying in the halcyon days of letter writing this never happened, but there is something inherently problematic in instantaneous communication, if you're not careful about it. And people are seldom careful.
Human contact is so sanitized on the Internet. This is coming from someone who cringes at human contact, hates small talk, and frequently displays hermit-like tendencies. But even I can see the warning signs. People can present themselves in such idealized or exaggerated ways; they can leave out the less pleasant parts, or they can become complete caricatures of nastiness. Above all, they're not real. Granted, I've had some very nice interactions online, and I try to make myself as genuine as possible, but it's not precisely me. It's Internet me. Ironic that I'm posting all of this on the Internet. It's just some things I've been realizing as I've been trying to cut back my computer time and live a real, genuine life. Don't know how well it's going just yet.
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Date: 2008-11-11 02:03 pm (UTC)In high school I used to scrawl down my little novellas in notebooks. One of them was perhaps as long as 200 pages. That was about my limit. When I started in on my 300+ page fantasy novels, I switched to the computer. Also, I was worried that one little fire would send all my hard work up in smoke. Not that a computer file is invulnerable, but at least it can be backed up. ;)