Once again it is that time of the month, where I offer up little thoughts I have had and not had time to share and elaborate on as much as I would have liked. Here are the offerings for the May 2012 edition.
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Birds are interesting creatures. People either love them and want to watch them or they don’t care. Until recently I thought bird watching was somewhat a waste of time. But as I have taken some time to observe them more closely in recent years, I see the appeal and I am also creeped out by them. Let me give you some examples of things I have seen birds do. A few years ago, I was driving along at a fairly rapid pace when a bird plopped onto the street right in front of my car. It couldn’t fly any more apparently. I was in a panic trying to figure out how not to kill this poor thing, as I already had birdblood on my hands.. er… bumper which is a horrific story for another day. Anyway, in moments two other birds flew down and lifted the wounded one to the side of the road, i.e. safety. I was humbled and amazed by that. Later it occurred to me that maybe there might have been sinister ulterior motives at work. Second amazing instance occurred in 2008. My sis-in-law and I were on the first leg of a two leg, NYC – Washington D.C. trip. We were in busy NYC right in front of Madison Square Garden when we saw two brazen pigeons fighting over a french fry that had been left behind by somebody. The two of them were tugging away when it flew out of their beaks into the air, where a tiny little bird swooped in and without letting the fry hit the ground, flew off with its prize. My sis-in-law looked at me, both of us stunned by the sight and said, “Did you see that?”. I think we were the only ones who saw it all go down. Finally, this past Memorial Day, I went to the Riverwalk in Naperville where we spent some time walking and observing nature. When I met him. The infamous Wood Duck. And I thought he looked evil and told him as much. He knew even though he doesn’t speak human and tried to get me all wet because I insulted him. Moral of this really long bullet point is that birds are interesting. And a little creepy.
- I think technology is causing people to grow together, while tearing them apart at the same time. I think it’s a little strange that I can be closer to someone across the world from me, than I am with someone who is sitting next to me. And I wonder, will there be a time when humanity will cease to engage on a physical level and just do so on a technological level? Will we become like pandas? Will we live in virtual realities and forget the actual world we live in? Reminds me of STNG and holo-addiction. I can see the appeal. And I am afraid for humanity.
- The idea of a Zombie Apocalypse has gone from something that is fun to think about to become something that is feasible. I’m scared. And I think it’s time we really work on our plans to save ourselves.
- When I was a younger woman, I used to wonder why people who were older than me were annoyed by some of my youthful antics. As I have grown older, I can see their point. Young people, while refreshing at times, tend to be really irritating in their naiveté. And I am not that old. But I spent a day at the mall and I have to say, yes older people, you are right. Young adults need to learn how to stop being so irritating.
- People I know have lost parents in recent days. And something is clear to me. It doesn’t matter if you are 80 or 10. It’s is the worst thing imaginable and my heart goes out to my friends who have suffered this kind of loss.
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Finally, last month I reported that I feared that I was becoming a nomophobe. I have positive progress to report. I went to my brother’s digs with the family a few nights ago and left my phone in the car by mistake. Instead of dashing back to go get it and miss a few precious moments with my nieces, I opted to leave it in the car. And I didn’t think about except for the regret that my baby girls looked adorable and I had no camera to photograph them with. Nothing like family to cure you of some weird technologic addiction.