technology

Posted on by kkwrites8739

We are all tired right now. Pandemic fatigue. Election fatigue. 2020 fatigue.

Too many things have happened this year to bring the collective human spirit either together or apart. Over 250,000 of us have died. Every one of those people had family and friends. How those people left behind manage on now is questionable.

Some have chosen to be angry and be selfish. Something that is simply meant to save lives has been made political. Especially here in the USA I think humans have lost track of what it means to be part of family and friends because we are too close together.

Some of us may live in a rural area, but it is too easy to reach out on technology at the touch of a finger; so we are still figuratively close. There are still areas in our world where humans don’t have technology. It isn’t just a quit pop of thought to grab the device in our pocket or purse.

Less than 100 years ago the idea of going over to see the neighbor took planning. A person’s day was full of doing things necessary for staying close to home and going away from home took time and miles. The use of horses, taking food with you, and maybe not even calling ahead to let them know you were coming. Yet you were welcomed upon arrival.

We honestly take it for granted now that we can reach out in a split second and talk to anyone anywhere. Even the most remote of places can, at times, be reached via 5G or satellite. We want it all and we want it now.

Humans, especially Americans, have grown accustomed to instant gratification and entitlement.

Enter a global pandemic.

Demands for an entire world to not just slow down, but . . .stop. Stay in one place. Don’t see family and friends for days, weeks, months. Figure out out to work a job from home. How to BE with each other, stuck, and falling over each other in a confined space instead of constantly being in motion away from the home.

It may feel like going backwards. We used to not leave our home base for long periods. We grew, cooked, and ate our food at home at a table. We did our schooling at home, often with anything in our surroundings being the stuff of teachable moments. Maybe one day a week a special trip was made into the nearest town for shopping, visiting, or religious escape. This was the life of our grandparents.

Life leading up to 2020 was full of not growing our food, but shopping, sometimes daily for whatever to make for supper or for fast food. Education was supplied, most often, away from home at schools. Our children spent time at daycare while we worked. Families complained of not having enough time to be together.

Suddenly 2020 says now you must all stay together constantly in one building for long periods. Children are in the way. Our jobs either figured out how to work from home or we now don’t have a job. Shopping was done by buying in bulk on one trip. Families now want time away from each other.

We have forgotten how to be. Be still. Be together. Breathe. Relax.

We are angry, sad, frustrated.

That doesn’t mean we should forget about keeping each other safe. Yes, was want to go out. Get away. See people we haven’t seen in months.

Too bad.

Because so many refused to care for how our actions affect others in the first place is why we are having to close down even more now. It’s the holiday season and as American we expect, we demand, we need to celebrate with family and friends. Yet it is that feeling of entitlement that has lead so many to not social distance.

And why so many of us have lost loved ones.

We want to get together with family this holiday season, too. We need to be close. We need to grieve. The virus doesn’t care.

I KNOW we’re used to getting what we want, but right now we MUST think of everyone and not be selfish. I want to see my family, too, but I also don’t want to possibly make them sick. I don’t want to get this.

All I can say is: I miss my brother. A holiday is only a day on the calendar and it only has as much meaning as we give it. Family CAN get together later. We can live video visit. We can use cell phones any time of any day.

Stay home. Mask up.

Please.

Don’t judge family members that fear the virus and don’t want to get together. It’s because we love you that we are staying home.

Stay safe out there.

#forgottentimes

Posted on by kkwrites8739

Spending quality time with good friends. Do teen-aged girls have the market cornered on this? Is this phenomenon a thing of the past, passed by now by the electronic age of “smart” gadgets that have human beings “talking” to each other over screens instead of actual face to face. I mean, actually using their voices, vocal cords, not text speech or an electronic or computer voice over a screen or microphone – even if they’re in the same room – to have an actual conversation for more than 10 seconds constitutes quality time these days.

I am so incredibly happy to have just had several hours of delightful conversation with two ladies. I got out of my house, away from all screens, and had actual face to face time with friends. It was a reminder of how comforting it can be to be around people with similar likes/dislikes, activities, and situations. It was relaxing to just be able and sit back to enjoy laughter and tears about topics such as our kids, jobs, and even just life in general.

Too often in this age everything is about rush rush rush. Getting everything done as quickly as possible. We have drive through fast food places, drive through pharmacies, drive through coffee places, drive through banks, and even drive through liquor stores. Almost everything we do can be done on a screen that fits in our pocket, almost everything we need can be delivered to our doorstep, and much of what we use can be thrown in the garbage. American Society is about: hurry up, take no care, take nothing personal, care for no one, throw it out.

Whoa, slow it down! I think we all need to slow it down and take the time to make a big effort to make sure we mark it on the calendar right now to force ourselves to be with family and friends and away from the screens, the drive-throughs, and the garbage. We NEED to take days to cook slow food. Make an actual meal at home to sit at a table and eat with guests and enjoy great conversation. Send left-overs home with those we care about to enjoy later.

We allow ourselves to get too busy with work and family life. We don’t make time for friends and volunteering. That’s backwards. Family life is more full when it includes friends and community efforts. I don’t care what you do. Walk the neighbor’s dog once in a while for Pete’s sake. Yes. I suggest you know your neighbor. Gasp! What a concept! Shovel the driveway for the elderly couple down the block even though they don’t know you and they didn’t ask. Don’t take any money for doing it. Just smile. Make new friends. Guess what? You weren’t on a screen for a few minutes, you got some exercise, and you made someone’s day.

The world is full of things to do besides our jobs and the smart phones. GO see a friend. Yup. Just. Go. Do. It. I did. I’ve missed it. Yes, I’m the one without a job. I know she’s a busy person with a job and teen girls who keep her on the run. It makes it very difficult to grab any time to get together. I finally saw her car at home when I was on a run to get milk. So, I just simply stopped by. Is that rude? Maybe. Was she busy? She didn’t say she was. She IS the type of person to let me know if she is. A few minutes later another friend of hers came over, too. The three of us chatted for several hours. Not only did I get to see my friend, but perhaps I made a new one.

It had been quite a while. In fact we had only seen each other I think once in the past year or two. We follow each other on Facebook. We “like” each other’s posts from time to time and might post a comment here or there, but we just couldn’t find time to get together. We also each had things going on. Some pretty serious things to deal with. A few years ago we had a falling out over politics. I still have some reservations that we will never see eye to eye about some pretty heavy stuff. However, I think we really could have helped each other deal with and been there for each other with these serious things we’ve gone through in the past few years if we hadn’t been so stubborn.

We’re not besties, but I sure do miss the fun times and the conversations. We used to have game nights and movie nights and heck, just sit around the fire nights. It’s nice to have girl’s nights. Ya gotta have some time to have the ladies to chat with, adults to sit and dish with, when all you’ve got at home is a house full of teen boys. I’ve had a house full of teen boys for years now. As a single mom I’m really missing chatting with adults! Chatting through posts on Facebook just doesn’t quite do the trick.

These teens can have their screens. They are forgetting how to communicate. They are forgetting how to BE human beings! I fear humans will lose the ability to actually verbally speak if technology takes over “speaking” for us through screens. I mean, these kids today can be sitting right next to each other and not face each other or verbally speak to each other. They will still text on their phones to talk to each other! It’s amazing to watch. Actually it’s scary.

They can take their screens and shove it! I thoroughly enjoyed my live time with my lady friends tonight. Here’s to doing it more often! (Glasses clinking!)