My Past Week

It always seems that there is a "theme" or something to each week. Its as if each week is a television episode, in which you are the main character and by the end of the episode you learn something great and wonderful, or are left to fix whatever you broke in the next week.

Then again, it probably is the other way around. Episodes of television were probably modeled after a week of a lifetime; leaving the gaps to be what distinguish who we are... you know, those times that truly define you, those times when you aren't really the "main character."

I have been talking recently with my friends about writing,  and my one friend has been talking about the novel she is working on. It got me to thinking about this whole "main character" idea, and how we all kind of seem pre-occupied with our own lives.

So local news this week was reporting about this new "Facebook for the Neighborhood" thingy. I forget what it was called, but the basic premise is that you can now interact with your neighbors through this magic website. This kind of brings me back to Hank Green's video on SOPA. He talks about the internet kind of being like an infinite street, how there are bad sections of it, and fancy sections, and run down sections. The more people connected to each other, the longer this infinite street gets.

But the thing that irritates me is that THIS IS A VIRTUAL STREET, and albeit the neighborhood idea is great, but why not just knock on the doors of your real neighbors and actually talk to them. I am not condemning the internet, I just think that us internetians need to get in touch with the real world as well as this virtual paradise.

So I conducted another social experiment today. I had this little nametag thing when I went to the Science Center/Sportworks. In anticipation of seeing those "Ask Me About [Insert Product/Exhibit Here]" buttons, I decided to write on mine simply:

Interestingly enough, I was asked by the Science Center people "So tell me about the internet" and I basically said this - The Internet is like an infinite street... and I got some interesting reactions.

One gentleman proposed that we create a new internet... one that has decency and is kind of what the internet is supposed to be - Creative people collaborating and creating awesome things as a result. I was taken aback at that, but I shouldn't have had been surprised. I ran into an Eagle Scout there afterall, and so I was kind of taking whatever was going to come to me over the course of the day.

I believe that is the best way to live life. Live it in segments, and live it by taking in stride whatever happens.