I don’t blog about work. I feel that if I really start to use this venue to rant about work, I’ll never stop, and while Dilbert is funny to read, hearing about one tormented soul’s existence over and over gets to be oppressive.
Suffice it to say that *if* I did blog about work here, I could be quite prolific.
No, my internal monologue hasn’t been silent over the last few days and weeks. I’ve just been swamped and haven’t had the time to put to writing.
I’m sure you know how it is. Spring changes to early summer, the days are longer, its nice to be out and about rather than cooped up infront of a computer.
There are a number of rants rolling around in my brain, taking shape, maturing (so to speak). Rest assured that they’ll explode into this forum soon.
Today I sat for 4 hours of tattooing on my Haida Raven and Sun tattoo. This is obviously not complete (another 4ish hours to go), but Daemon (of Urban Primitive) is a creative genius and I’m not about to rush body art that I’ll live with for the rest of my days. 🙂
Here’s some pics of where we are today. Part 2? June 30th.
Big special thanks to Kim (my honey) for funding this artistic endeavour.
The momentus day has finally arrived! Fraleigh.ca is live!!!
Ok… this is too geeky (even for me)!! Yes a Scrolling LED Beltbuckle, capacity 6 messages of 256 characters each.
More details here
Regarding that last post and balance…
Kim and Dave sat patiently across the restaurant table for 10 minutes while I finished that last entry.
The irony of this is not lost on me, nor is the lack of balance. 🙂
We live in an increasingly connected world, or so it seems anyhow. Internet acceptance is growing as more and more people who have grown up with the ‘net move out on their own.
Arriving with the increased acceptance are tools and utilities that make the ‘net more friendly, useful, and efficient. Internet messengers, VoIP, better browsers, search engines, etc. have all increased the popularity of the information sharing tool that has existed since the late 60’s (yes, that is the Internet I’m talking about).
But how much of a good thing is too much? How far should the ‘net be allowed to invade our lives.
For example, I chat via email or instant messenger with my wife all day long, pretty much everyday. At the end of the day, I know how her day has gone, usually in a fair bit of detail. When we both get home at the end of the day, one of the typical things people talk about doesn’t exist for us.
The same is true for friends. It is unusual to go more than a day without a friend touching base and us updating each other with our life’s events. Again to the point that when we get together conversations in the past sense almost don’t exist.
Blogs, of course, just make this worse. Now I have a view into the writer’s life that once could have been a topic of discussion over coffee and desert. Hours of entertainment and interaction reduced to a quick read during a break at work and possibly a quick comment response.
So I’m torn… I love the ‘net. It pays my paycheque, simplifies my life, and makes vast amounts of information instantly available. But I miss the *human* element, the dynamics of a good debate, the fun of interpersonal silliness.
Have *you* found the balance?
Not terribly busy at work today. Not because there isn’t work to do, but rather because I just can’t be bothered to do any of it.
I commented on an image on our receptionist’s screen, she pointed me to:
Nice site. Lotsa pretty pictures 🙂 GREAT time waster!
Ok… I’m in lust. Technolust that is…
The Solar Flare Messenger Bag features an integrated solar charging solution designed to accommodate the most common consumer electronics currently used today. The stylish messenger bag is a quality, durable product with or without the solar charging feature. It features multiple pockets for a cell phone, PDA, iPod, or other accessories. The bag features many sections for carrying papers, files, books, and a laptop computer. Other features include a padded shoulder strap, padded back section, side water bottle pockets, an elastic lanyard for keys, and a quick release clip.
The solar charging solution provides up to 2.5 watts of power to trickle charge your high-tech toys using an existing 12V auto adapter.
Now don’t get me wrong… I’m frequently happy to leave all technology behind and hide from the work-a-day world, but if you *have to* bring technology with you. What better way to get away and bring it along at the same time.
Over the years I’ve been involved with several large groups of people that referred to themselves, sometimes loosely, as being a community. Some of these groups have been very functional, others… well.. not so much.
Each of the communities I’ve belonged to, for whatever period of time, has always had a strong unifying bond. Church groups, pseudo-military, music lovers/ravers, etc. all have a central theme that forms the core focus of the group. With many of those groups, when the focus is gone, there is little else in common. The thread holding the people together is gone, and so are they.
Now it may not be the case that the thread of continuity for the community has gone, but perhaps that the individuals decide to detach themselves from the thread. Perhaps their individual interests change or mature over time, perhaps they just outgrow the organization they were a part of. In either case, that thin thread of community isn’t enough to keep them and they move on, leaving the community behind. I have friends who refer to a community we left as a “communicable” because it’s more like a flu-bug than a functioning, healthy, spirit-full community. Funny and sad.
I’ve recently tripped across a group in Toronto called the Freespace Collective. A group of anarchists (anti-current-corrupt-establishment, not disassociative-anarchy) who organize (underground) Techno parties around Toronto. Certainly there’s the music thread at their core; however, they are trying to expand their thread of community into more than their initial reason d’être. Another group in the Toronto area, Sumkidz, are doing the same. Music is the core that brought them together, but they’re aiming to be more. To take the thread of focus that started the community and weave it into a tapestry that is rich and diverse.
These groups, I believe, have figured something out: a Community is not like a motorcycle club, where there is a single focus that unites its members. Rather, a Community is rich with unities on all different levels. A Community cannot bind itself to a single thread, a single ideal or a single person. Those that do are bound to crumble over time. A Community has to be diverse, flexible and constantly growing.
I said a long time ago: Anything that doesn’t grow is subject to decay. I wish these groups and others like them continued growth and success.
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