Call it the ‘Facebook’ effect…

A while back I was having a discussion with a friend who had recently joined Facebook.

“I just don’t get it…Maybe it’s just me, but I don’t care if you are brushing your teeth or just got back from the gym.”

Being a Facebook fiend, I replied, “Yeah, you just don’t seem to get it.”

“It’s about keeping in touch. It’s about keeping tabs on people you otherwise would have forgotten about. It’s about being social.” Are just a few of the descriptions as to why folks use Facebook and find it so addicting.

So here I stand, as an admitted Facebook fanatic and staunch defender, saying “I just don’t care anymore.”

Call it what you like, Facebook Fatigue, FBOD or simply a desire to interact with someone (here’s a novel idea) face-to-freaking-face.

I was one of those: JR. is (insert pointless action here)-people. Updating my status via my cell, checking my email for updates. I now see how lame I must have seemed to well, normal people.

But I’ve had enough.

Granted, I have yet to delete my Facebook account, but I have turned-off all notifications from Facebook and don’t plan on logging-in for the foreseeable future.

Have I gone mad? Did someone piss me off? Am I too broke to afford internet?

No, to all of the above. I am just feeling a bit overexposed.

In these days of Twitter, Facebook, IMs, texts and cell phones. The world is never more than a buzz or annoying ringtone away.

I recently saw a PBS documentary “Alone in the Wilderness” about a man who retired to remote Alaska and lived on his own for 30 years.

I was jealous. As I sat on my couch, laptop in perched just below the view of the TV and cell phone resting nearby, I decided that something had to change.

The feeling of being constantly, “On” is draining. Which is not to say that my cell is blowing-up or that my inbox is overflowing, but sometimes being disconnected just sounds nice.

Then I came to a realization, I can turn the shit off.

Which I now do.

Email get checked in the morning as my company blocks personal email access. I check again at lunch because I really have nothing better to do. And I check it for the last time when I get home from work. Anything that comes in after that, can wait til the next day.

My cell phone is turned-off at 8 PM, assuming I am not out and about.

So am I becoming some kind of hermit? Well, by the hyper-connected (unhealthily so) standards of today, yes I am.

Maybe I am a throwback to the good old days…I am not that old, but old enough to remember a time before e-mail, cell phones and even (Gasp) pagers.

Somehow life went on back then.

I think it’s time to simplify. (A sentiment I seem to be repating in this here blog) Take a little time to enjoy the world and people around. Look up from the digitized representations of ‘being social’ and actually say “Hello,” to someone.

I am no technophobe and not even that outgoing. But something tells me that if you get out and enjoy life…the call of the laptop/cell phone may be considerably lessened.

I am giving-up blog posts for Lent.

Obviously I am not giving-up posting…

 

So apparently it’s Lent.

 

For those heathens out there, let me break Lent down for ya.

 

Lent is basically Easter’s pre-season. That’s pretty much it. Technically, it’s the 40-days between Ash Wednesday and Easter.

 

Though for some odd reason certain folks (sometimes referred to as Christmas & Easter Christians) seem to get into Lent.

 

The whole shtick is that someone gives-up something that is important to them in honor of the sacrifice Jesus made for them.

 

The irony is that these C&E Christians (I am not even a C&E Christian myself, and make no pretenses otherwise) usually give-up a vice. Which is ironic, because as a Christian, these vices should be avoided year-round.

 

I am a Protestant, so technically, I don’t HAVE to partake in Lent. The practice of self-sacrifice is more of a punishment in the vein of Catholicism. (We Protestants got the long-end of the stick on that one…Woo Hoo!)

 

Now I'll get down off my high-horse. I, the self-described bad Christian will admit, I usually give something up for Lent.

 

One year it was cussing, another it was chocolate, etc. For a few years it became a game as I tried to figure-out something that sounded impressive, but really would be easy. I gave-up going to Canada one year, for example.

 

But then I changed my perspective. I started giving-up things that were a big part of my life: Fast Food, Coffee, Cussing (a very difficult one), etc. The idea was not to focus on what I was missing, but to allow more opportunities to remember why I was doing it in the first place, to ponder religion and be thankful for what I have.

 

When weighed against the sacrifices that have been made for me as a Christian, not dropping the F-bomb for forty days, seems downright trivial. Being reminded of those sacrifices numerous times a day really helped to ground a perspective that can really get off-kilter.

 

So although I didn’t give anything up this year, the simple fact that I am writing this exhibits that I am thinking about religion, which as I said before, is kinda the whole point.

 

PS- Feel free to share what you have given-up for Lent in this or past year in the comments section. And, as always, feel free to share your thoughts on my ramblings there as well. 

A farewell to an institution…

Today is a red-letter day in Seattle. It is the first day in 146 years that you cannot get a hard copy of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer.

 

I, as a blogger, feel a part of the paradigm shift that has caused the downfall of a Seattle institution.

 

The 146-year bastion of journalism succumbed to the pressures of the twittering-blogging-facebooking-I-need-info-now-regardless-of-the-source that is the modern American public.

 

I was raised on the P-I and I love(d) the paper. My dad maintained a subscription for as long as I can remember. One of my favorite past-times was settling-in with the Sunday paper, a cup of coffee in-hand and catching-up on the goings-on around town and in the world.

 

My love of the P-I sparked more than a few arguments as I attended Western Washington University and obtained a degree in Journalism. The Joe Friday, ‘Just the facts ma’am’ style of writing that you are reading right now was heavily influenced by the reporting in the P-I.

 

I’ve always described the difference between the P-I and the Seattle Times as this:

-If you want to hear the: who, what where, when and why (aka the 5 W’s) read the P-I.

-If you want to read some lame-ass human interest story about the event 3 days after the fact, read the Times.

 

I steadfastly believe that description of Seattle’s two dailies. In fact, I am utterly disgusted that the ‘Times’ is the journalistic representative of Seattle to the world.

 

In my mind, it’s like MTV News beating-out CNN.

 

Overall, I am happy that Seattle still has at least one daily newspaper.

 

I do think that a vigorous, non-blog-based, professional local journalistic presence is vital to a community.

 

I fear what will come from a world unregulated by editors or journalistic safeguards.

 

Print journalism (for the most part) kept everyone (including the reporters) honest.

 

Speed, as with cars, is impressive, but rarely safe.

 

The old adage of ‘Haste makes waste’ rings horribly true here.

 

Journalism, not just print, is being replaced by quick fixes and entertainment.

 

It’s too late for the P-I, but I hope we all learn from its demise. There is a value to waiting until 6 AM for your news.

 

It’s important to note that it is not a reporter’s job to filter the news, it is the job of journalists to make sure what you are reading is as correct as it can be.

 

The P-I did that well for over 140 years, and I truly and honestly appreciate it.

Light at the end of the tunnel

Everyone knows it’s been a rough couple of years for Seattle sports fans.

But, dare I say, it looks like there is a light at the end of the tunnel. 

The University of Washington Men’s Basketball team’s outright win of the Pac-10 regular season crown capped what could possibly be one of the best sports months for Seattle in years.

The Huskies haven’t won the Pac-10 outright since 1953, so it was quite the feat. Now I am not picking UW as a ‘Sweet 16’ team, but the team showed a lot of pluck coming back from a less-than-stellar start of the season to claim the title. And more importantly the accomplishment gives Seattleites something to be proud of.

The Huskies title came hot on the heels of the Seahawks finalizing a free agent coup, the signing T.J. Houshmandzadeh. ‘Housh’ as I’ll refer to him since I cannot spell his name, was the NFL’s premier free agent wide receiver, a position the Hawks were in desperate need of an upgrading from last season. And the Hawks stepped-up and got their man. With the addition of Housh, the Hawks return to their rightful spot among the frontrunners to win the NFC West. Ah, it feels good to say that. Especially, after slogging through a 4-12 ‘swan song’ season for former head coach Mike Holmgren who really deserved a better send-off. 

And yes, I am going to list Ken Griffey, Jr.’s return as a plus for the Seattle sports psyche. I know, I know…I previously posted on this very blog, that I am less-than-stoked by the prospect of Griff’s return. But this is not about me…It is about Seattle as a whole. And from that perspective, I do think Griffey’s return is good thing. It is a ray of hope for Mariners fans with little else to look forward to in the coming season. It is good to see some sentiment infused into the big business of professional sports. Griff may not be a 50 HR, 100+ RBI, gold glove winner anymore. But he made the M’s what they are today and helped weave the team into the fabric of Seattle. For that, he does deserve a return-trip to Seattle and a chance for a ‘swan song’ of this own.

Though the 206 is still without a professional basketball team, the city does get to usher-in the world’s game this month. Major League Soccer has come to town as the Seattle Sounders FC. From what I’ve heard all tickets are sold out, just showing that even in these tough times, Seattleites are hungry for good sporting events. Personally, I prefer to play soccer over watching it, but I am gonna try to score a pair of tickets to see what it’s all about.

So bring-on spring!

March madness actually means something to Seattleites again. There is a reason to watch the Mariners and with the NFL draft coming soon, the Seahawks could end-up as more than just a contender for the NFC West title, they could be mentioned along with the words: Super & bowl, as they should be.

Enjoy!