I’m still here: back online after a year without the internet
By Paul Miller, theverge.comI was wrong.
One year ago I left the internet. I thought it was making me unproductive. I thought it lacked meaning. I thought it was “corrupting my soul.”
It’s a been a year now since I “surfed the web” or “checked my email” or “liked”…
There’s a lot of “reality” in our virtual, and a lot of “virtual” in our reality. So true. Often feel like technology takes over but there is a lot of good and a need for it for my day-to-day work. Basically a super interesting read.
“Funny side effect of writing bridal posts: Facebook ads always try to sell me the dresses I feature. It’s as if I have a never-ending need for gowns.”
“‘Kindness’ covers all of my political beliefs. No need to spell them out. I believe that if, at the end, according to our abilities, we have done something to make others a little happier, and something to make ourselves a little happier, that is about the best we can do. To make others less happy is a crime. To make ourselves unhappy is where all crime starts. We must try to contribute joy to the world. That is true no matter what our problems, our health, our circumstances. We must try. I didn’t always know this and am happy I lived long enough to find it out.” — Roger Ebert
Seven years ago today, I met my best friend. This punk stealing the shot has become the person whom I enjoy the most and is now my husband. Happy anniversary babe! Special kudos go out to my editor, Jon, for allowing me to write a story about beer that resulted in our meeting. Also, I’m hopeful Dana has forgiven me for being the new girl who got to drink beer and meet a cute boy while working.
Church has never been my thing. But, as a child, there was a strange excitement when we would go. You see, my dad was super tight with God. Well, that’s what I thought. (If you know my dad, you know this is very, very wrong.)
You see, before I could read, I paid a lot of attention to the way people said words. Prayers ended by saying Amen. My dad’s name, Eamonn, is pronounced very similarly. For a number of years, I believed prayers ended by saying my dad’s name — which I would do, then smile and look at him.
Logical, right? Then I learned to read.
Sitting in a pew, I cracked open the bible at our weekly pilgrimage to the chapel and found the prayer I had memorized staring back at me. This time I could read the words rather than simply repeat them. Something struck me — my dad’s name wasn’t there. That’s not the conclusion I reached though. Instead, I decided the bibles all had misspelled the word. This may be a telling tidbit into my future life, that I spent my childhood looking for typos in the bible. But, I truly believed it was an error made by god, my pastor, perhaps even the printer of bibles. Never did I think, perhaps this is a different word.
That’s the kind of kid logic that is explored in This American Life this week. The podcast, which I just listened to, is actually from 2001. It may not be recent but the conversation will always be. Children have a limited understanding of the world to use while coming to conclusions. Often that results in incorrect but genuinely entertaining results. The hour-long program is worth a listen, if you enjoy those things. I would caution that the last part is a bit sad. However, the program did remind me of one other kid logic moment.
My brother only struggled with saying one word, vagina. He would say china, as in the country although he didn’t understand the concept at about 3 years old of a different country. Saying one word incorrectly became a confusing moment for him at 3, maybe 4 years old. Dustin had this small plastic Tigger doll that had writing on the bottom, Made in China. He asked me once to read it to him, what did it say. So, I told him.
He double checked what I had told him. China? Was I certain? I was. He looked puzzled. Then he looked down at each of the ladies around him and back at the toy. It soon lost favor in his rotation of playing with toys thanks to whatever logic went through his little head. I, on the other hand, loved that toy. Such a funny realization.
I wonder what others got completely wrong when they were little.
Look at that smirk.
how-19 year old activist Zack Kopplin is making life hell for louisianas creationists -
” “What disturbs me though, is when other kids are the ones to dismiss me based on age,” he told io9. “They see a 19 year old kid and can’t believe that I can actually go out and change the world. Too many of my peers have this attitude that they need to dress nicely, sit quietly, and wait until we are adults to change things. This attitude must change. My generation needs to speak out for what we believe.”
What an amazing young man.
(via adventuresinlearning)
“14 Wonderful Words With No English Equivalent”.
For example:
Layogenic (Tagalog)
Remember in Clueless when Cher describes someone as “a full-on Monet… from far away, it’s OK, but up close it’s a big old mess”? That’s exactly what this word means.via The Week
Wait… Words are out there that correspond with Clueless? Awesome.
“When somebody steals your identity, they only take the good parts.” — Tristan Jimerson (via moth-stories)
So true and a great story on The Moth.
(via moth-stories)
“Whatever personal challenge you have to overcome, you must be brave enough to accept that you are different. You must have the courage to trust your instincts and be ready to question what other people don’t. If you do that, you can seize opportunities that others would miss. Believe in yourself, and use everything you can - including the obstacles - to propel you along the road to success. Who knows what you might achieve?” —
Sir Richard Branson