Point of View

Today was rather cumbersome...

While I did accomplish quite a bit, my achievements for the day seem unworthy of acknowledgment.

I suspect it is due to my unemployment issue. The last company, while a big one at that, did not call me back and I fear they will not. I thought my interview went well, was qualified, and would be an ideal candidate. However, I know it came down to first impressions. And I understand how the game works. Yet, I wonder what does it take for a hard working individual to get a job? I cannot be completely unbiased in my self-assessment but I can be quite honest with myself. Either I impressed someone or I did not. That is my bottom line, and it seems that I did not.

On the other hand I was happy to pick up another computer job on the side. At least that will calm my nerves while I watch my unemployment dwindle away. I fear the reaper. He is called last resort.

God help me.

The Molecular Genetics of ADHD

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divine Right

16 billion years ago,

the painter-creator-

Stroked without aim upon black canvas

augmented by lifeless mass,

streaks of glowing electrons

a quark in time-

creating tiny Gods.

His burnt bulb of burgundy bled

across blackened soulless bodies

sucking, squeezing & pulling

the juice in & around within it.

Yet stood out,

amidst all the space-

his greatest creation,

One brush of luck

A pale blue dot

Holding of no significance

Enemies of Reason

Prof Richard Dawkins tackles the epidemic of irrational, superstitious thinking which is blotting the light of logic and evidence. After garnering tips on psychics' entirely earthly trade secrets from the illusionist Derren Brown, Dawkins attends a seance and confronts the medium.
Time and again, the interviewees appeal to personal revelation or second-hand anecdote to justify their belief.
(Ep.1 (1 of 5))

Sunday Bliss

I received the Unemployment letter in the mail this week notifying me of the extension that is being provided. Good grief! Is our economy really that much in trouble? The sad thing is that I can use that extension if this job position does not follow through.

I watched the "Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams" by Randy Pausch yesterday...again. He is truely an inspiration. There were a few things I took away from watching the video that has, and will, stuck.

1. Don't listen to what gentlemen say, rather look at their actions.

How true is that! My prior relationships were determined by actions and less than what I had to say. But this is something I passed this along as wise words to my sister. God knows she could use the help. When I was 'interested' in the person I was dating, nothing would stand in my way of trying to impress her. This clicked upstairs when I heard this tidbit.

2. Brick Walls

The concept of a 'brick wall' is not original in concept. We all understand obstacles in our path of life are merely speed bumps. Yet, it is Randy's approach that is thought provoking. You can not help but be a bit self reflective in what you want to achieve. Or, to view our own goals in a positive light rather than a dark tunnel with a mere glimmer of light on the other end. It is how you approach or view your obstacle that will determine your attitude in overcoming them.

3. Positive attitude

Need I say more about Randy's positive attitude? He clearly loves what he does (or I should say did) and it shows. Happiness tends to wear itself on your sleeve, allowing for all to see. Like a freshly painted wall that attracts your new shirt, it is almost guaranteed to attract.

Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams

Carnegie Mellon Professor Randy Pausch (Oct. 23, 1960 - July 25, 2008) gave his last lecture at the university Sept. 18, 2007, before a packed McConomy Auditorium.
In his moving presentation, "Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams," Pausch talked about his lessons learned and gave advice to students on how to achieve their own career and personal goals. For more, visit www.cmu.edu/randyslecture.

Religion - Marcus Brigstocke

Marcus Brigstocke rants about religion. Not for the faint-hearted! Audio from 'The Now Show', Radio 4, Saturday 21 July 2007.

The Dark Knight movie review

I just saw The Dark Knight on the 'Ultra-screen'.

I lost my hearing on the Sound Surround Dolbi 3.1 installed in this enormous room.
And the Ultra screen, digital quality and all, was amazing.

Well worth the extra dollar we had to spend. But we lost more than that in our pretzel and cheese product we purchased.

First off, I am NOT a fanatic of D.C. comics, Batman, Superman, or any other silly hero movies. This could be blamed on my cling to reality than the W.O.W world, or maybe due to living with 2 nerds throughout college. I can't decide.
However, I do take pleasure in a realistic portrayal, action packed movie based on comic books. In other words: just like sex, don't fake it. Or, don't over glamorize what your doing. Just be honest and as truth like about the sub fantasy land you live in.
i.e. make Batman a realistic hero built of the same brick-and-mortar humans are than a god-like comic hero that is god-like.

With that being said, I felt this movie approached Batman from realistic aspect. Batman was mortal. He was portrayed as the hero and villain.
Christian Bale, Batman, is not as good as his predecessors. Sorry folks, but its true. Not a bad performance, but give me Michael Keaton any day.

The Joker, played by Heath Ledger, bring a bi-polar, maniacal, and twisted villain not brought before. Heath is not...well, heath. You see nothing of his previous Broke Back Mountain performance in this role. And that is why he will be nominated for an Oscar. At least a nomination. Not because of his death, but his glorification of a rather overdone character and breathing new life into it.


The movie was 2 hours and 45 minutes long. It could have been shaved by at least 15-20 minutes in plot. But I give them credit for providing a story line spread out among several characters. And trust me, there are a few twists you won't see coming, or villains not spoken about in previews.


The sound was a bit low at times (and this was not due to the theater)
There was plenty of action.
It is rated "R" for a reason; please do not bring your children to it.

Is it worth dropping 7-8 dollars to see?

Absolutely!

4 out of 5 stars.

I suffer bouts of Astral State- put in an inane asylum

To awakened trance of enlightenment

The Day of the Sun arises,

And the journey I partake

A cracked wafer of tasteless forgery

Pushed into my tongue of distaste

Blends with the burning oxidized wine

As lifeless as the lips of mass it touches

And up before me, upon an alter

A confidence man

Trenched in white

Spouting his delusional truth

I am beheld inside this room

Tied down like a hog and stuck once more

to awaken once more

And believe, I myself, am insane as those around me

Graduate Survey

I am very excited...built with anticipation.

You see, I've built my survey that I am going to distribute to formulate my methodology.
And, it is built on-line.

Here is my first example, but not the real one:
http://spreadsheets.google.com/gform?key=pjP9eaSBsW7HE3Cgi1W4NPA&hl=en&gridId=0#edit

This is built from Google Docs. If you have a Google account, you can build your own survey and distribute online-for free. The other you can use is JotForm.

So, when fall comes, I'll send out this link to all the teachers' in the secondary education level and await for all responses. The best part of using Google Docs is the live feed. When you provide a response, I will get it immediately, and provide the numbers on an Google's Excel Spreadsheet.

It was either do this or send out a paper product for teacher's to fill out. And, I know it is more convenient for an e-mail response than taking out to send back a letter. After all, teacher's are rather busy with limited time to respond to all numerous requests they have in a day.
I can't wait to send this out!

Letterman vs. O'Reilly

FNC's Bill O'Reilly returned to the Late Show Friday night for round two with David Letterman over Iraq. In the show taped on Monday but not aired until Friday, Letterman expressed disgust with the war: "So we've made a mistake in war, so we stay there and kill as many Americans as we possibly can? That's the way you get out of a mistake?"
At another point, Letterman fretted: "It's all about oil. That's why we're there. Big deal."
When O'Reilly asserted that "it isn't 'We're a bad country, Bush is an evil liar.' That's not true," Letterman retorted that "I didn't say we were a bad country. I didn't say he was an evil liar" and charged: "You're putting words in my mouth just the way you put artificial facts in your head."

Just a classic piece of O'Reilly talking about things in which he does not know-politics.

Job Interview P2

Yesterday's adventure was my lovely job interview. As mentioned, this is a real corporation, unlike my previous small business work experiences. It's exciting and nervous at once knowing I could finally settle into a long-term position. In which that is what I've been looking for.

So, what happened?

I started my day ironing out my dress shirt and pants, put out my tie and socks, then waited patiently for the time to come.

It always seems like time drags on those days you have interviews. Or is it just me?
For about an hour I flew through their website to look at their history and personal goals.
After all, you want to be prepared for future interview questions.

Wa-lah! My clock hit 1:00. Time to go!
Wow, where did time fly?
Cheez...

I dressed and headed into the 90 degree weather. Of all the days for it to be intensively hot.
*sigh*
My air conditioning was on full blast with the vents aimed at my armpits. Ten minutes of driving and I am already sweating. Fuck! My wife was right, I should have worn an undershirt. She is always right. I remind myself to give my wife a quarter later. (Enter in personal joke here)
The drive is only 20 minutes, being a straight shot from my house. However, the instructions they provided for parking in the customer's lot was incorrect. So, I did a do-si-do around the block and park randomly a block away.

I enter 5 minutes early to only wait 15 minutes more.
Why was I prompt in arrival again?
Anyhow...

The interview process was meeting with five people, independently, from several departments. This whole process took 2 hours and 45 minutes. I felt like it was a battle of attrition. If you last that long, you should be given the job. The good part to whole process was knowing it was only myself and one person being interviewed for this position. All because the person leaving, a friend of mine, is leaving the U.S. and heading to England this month. So, this company had to find a new employee rather quickly; and one being qualified to fit the seat.

Overall I thought it went well. Yet, I was told by my friend, that those who interviewed me thought I was nervous. They mistook my mannerisms for nervousness. This is something I am working on for interviews, but more so for every day conversations. My nature of behavior is worn on my sleeve. I use my hands like an Italian conversation. And I tend to look down or away when thinking. It helps me to concentrate on the question rather the person in front of me.

Here's to hoping I get this position....

Job Interview!

Today I have my job interview for a rather big company. I'm excited to finally get a chance to prove my job skills to a dependable employer. My last few work experiences have ended in drought-on their financial side. I want to find a job that I enjoy and look forward to going to work everyday. Don't get me wrong, I'm not living in fantasy world here. I understand a "job" is still a 'job'; work is work. Yet, after all the hard work I put in, and will be once school is complete, it would be great to see some form of reciprocation.

I have to be interviewed by four people, all independently, for an half-hour each. Yikes! Two hours of nodding, repeating the same shit that could have been explained by reading my resume...
Getting this job will come down to my personality rather my job skills. I have great references, letters of recommendation, along with a solid work background. Nothing is really missing from the puzzle. So, I suspect this is pure formality.

After all, there is only two people being interviewed for the position. And the person who currently has this position is leaving tomorrow. So, I know they are in a bind to find someone rather quickly-without being to hastily in their decision.

I really hope I get this position as time is running out on the shot clock. It's now or never. Or, at least that is what it seems like. While some politicians may claim the economy is not heading, or in a small slope, of a recession, I have to claim that it is.
The job market is rather poor with an overwhelming amount of individuals applying for the same position.
The dollar is rather weak.
We are still, for unknown reasons, funding an pricey non-war in Iraq.

Apple Iphone Applications

I have to give props to Chris Pirillo for creating this website:

http://iphone.lockergnome.com/

This allows anyone to jump on and rate the new Iphone applications, or insert a comment about a new one. Thank God! There are SO many to look through so this kind of help is great.

He also created another page for Mac programs:

http://apple.lockergnome.com/

Richard Dawkins on The Big Questions - 6th April 2008

Richard Dawkins on The Big Questions - 6th April 2008 (Part 1 of 6)
To watch the remaining episodes, flip through YouTube's player after it is done.

I wish we, America, had this kind of show to represent our intellectuals and express viewpoints otherwise suppressed by media.

The viewpoints presented by both 'sides' are perfectly mixed in this show, allowing for a free-form debate.

ADDA 13th National Conference

For those who missed it, or didn't know, the ADDA 13th National Conference has come and gone. Check out the website and read up on the recap notes:

http://addaconference.wordpress.com

Distraction=Boredom?

I was playing poker yesterday and got rather quickly bored. Not that this may be a noble concept in the mind of an ADD'er, yet there was a good reason. I found that the table I was playing at wasn't stimulating enough.

There was little to no conversation.

The people are my table couldn't hold a conversation.

The plays were typical and soaking with foreshadowing.

I was calling out hands with little to no ease.

Mind you, I am no poker pro. While I've read several books on poker play, and played, at least, 100+ tournaments, I still have a long way to go. Yet, when I find that I know what is going on inside the other person's head, allowing me to easily call or fold, it bores me.

I am not being arrogant here. Call this uncanny ability to read or understand people my 6th sense. But, it is there and real. At first I doubted this bit of ability as my ego getting in the way of my pride. However, as time went on, and more tournaments I played, and the more I verbalized certain plays, I saw that there was 'something' there.

Yesterday I sat at the table playing, with my cigar in hand and Guinness next to me, with very little thought of actually playing. I won a few pots letting the opponent know my "Ace high is good here, no need to bluff" and then calling them down with it to force a reaction of "WTF? Why did you call with just Ace-high?"

"I warned you..."

Then I went back into my shell of endless of thoughts, ignoring the rest around me.
I was more distracted by my cigar ashing unevenly, and being rather pissed at it, rather than the game.

Maybe I was bored with the people at the table.

Maybe I was bored with the game occurring at the table.

Maybe my heart wasn't into socializing.

Maybe I just wanted to smoke, drink and relax.

Pearl Jam: Animal

I love Pearl Jam!

This is what I listen to when I'm in 'that' mood. You know what I mean. However, the lyrics, however simplistic they are, are flexible for several ways of interpretation.

GRRRrrrrRRR!!!!

Pearl Jam - Animal lyrics
One, two, three, four, five against one
Five, five, against one
Said one, two, three, four, five against one
Five, five...five, five...five against one
Torture from you to me
Abducted from the street
I'd rather be...
I'd rather be with...
I'd rather be with an animal
Why would you wanna hurt me?
So frightened of your pain...
I'd rather be...
I'd rather be with...
I'd rather be with an animal
I'd rather be... 
I'd rather be... 
I'd rather be with an animal
I'd rather be...
I'd rather be with...
I'd rather be with an animal
I'd rather be...
I'd rather be with...
I'd rather be with an animal
Said one, two, three, four, five against one
Five, five...five, five...five against one
One, two, three, four, five against one
Five, five...five, five...five against one




Song lyrics | Animal lyrics

What is AD/HD? #1 AD/HD Video

What is AD/HD? Diagnosing ADHD AD/HD #2 Video

What is AD/HD? Treating ADHD AD/HD #3 Video

Iphone 3G Review

In case you have been buried in a tomb for the past month, let me resurrect your inept ability of social functionality:

The new Iphone 3G is out!

You can read the specifications of the Iphone by going to the Apple Website.

More importantly, the 2.0 update is active, ready to be used and abused for all you Iphone lovers. You can update the firmware by going through Apple's website, update on your Itunes, purchase the new phone at an AT&T store, or by going to this site:

http://gizmodo.com/5023760/download-iphone-20-firmware-right-now

Just copy & paste into your browser, follow the instructions and you should be fine.
I say "should" because there have been reviews of the new 2.0 firmware causing lock-up's on the Iphone's. I am not sure if this is just the upgrade on the old Iphone's or the new ones. Yet, my Iphone is working flawlessly, so far. Mind you, the link I have provided is to an unlocked version of 2.0. For those who may fret over not having an official version, feel free to just click your Iphone update button on Itunes.

Let's talk about Web Apps for the Iphone!

After downloading the 2.0 firmware upgrade, you'll notice a new icon on your Iphone called "App Store". Click on it and up comes the Apple Store where you can purchase applications for your Iphone. This can be downloaded from the Iphone, although I have been using Itunes as my docking station to do this. So, I'll follow you through the process from Itunes.

Connect your Iphone and bring up Itunes.

You'll notice the new Iphone applications have been added to the store. Some of them are free while others cost a few bucks. The ones I have uploaded are "AIM", "Twitterrific" and "Remote".

After you pick the application you want, it will download it to the Itunes store. This is where I got stuck for a second. It told me that it was downloaded to "Check for Purchases" in the Itunes Store. If you're a newbie like I am, at times, then you'll understand my frustration.


I kept looking for the "Check for Purchases" section? WTF? Where is it?

On top of your Itunes, there are a tabs of "File", "Edit", "Controls", "View", "Store"& "Advanced"
Click on the "Store" tab, and the 5th drop down selection is the "Check for Purchases"

Ah-ha! There it is!

Click it and it will bring up your authorization box where you type in your password for your Itunes account. It will access the store and take a minute or so to grab all the applications you selected.




Now go back to your Iphone under "Storage Devices" and click on "Applications". This will allow you to sync all your applications or a select few. Click either box and sync.
Done!
It will take a few minutes for Itunes to sync and upload the applications to your Iphone.

IPHONE APPS!
This is the "Twitterrific" app, free for download, for the Iphone. If you don't know what Twitter is, go here.
The appearance is great! The screen has the pictures of whom is twittering you with the text in white, with a black black background. Very easy to see and read. Next to the text is the time that he message appeared. Signing into Twitterrific was easy and took 20 seconds to do. The text box is your pop-up touch screen that you're used to for the Iphone. And when you twitter, it comes up in amazing speed!

This has surpassed my expectations for this program!



Then there is "Facebook". To find out more about it, go here.

Yeah, umm, I'm not really much of a Facebook fanatic...

From what I've read, and my friends, the functionality is ideal for using on-the-go.

Eh.

I'll let you decide on this one.




There will be more to come as I play with my toy.

;)

I hate Stupid people

Dealing with idiots causes a short circuit upstairs. My patience wears very thin.

Today I had to deal with one of these idiots...

In my spare "time" I pick up computer work on the side. This may be anyone who needs a complete re-build of their computer to the operating system. Typically it is a business person that I gain my work from.
Well, I sold an old laptop for someone I was working with. It was used and I put it on Craig's List with a "As-is" smeared across there. A day later I found a gentlemen that said he needed a laptop for his daughter and would fix it. Good. Well, good luck to you then. I was completely honest with him about what occurred with its previous employer, and wished him luck. Being a nice guy, I even said that if I misrepresented anything, he could get a refund. It was my way of saying "hey, here are the problems and I am being honest-good luck to you sir!"

Well the idiot-stick apparently found out how much it would cost to replace a plug on it, as well as the cord (all of which he knew already from my description) and called me back. But, I didn't get his call.
So, I called him back two days later.
Two days!
In that time his 'girlfriend' (the man is 40+ years old and he has a 'girlfriend'?) called my past employer and said I was "ditching them" and not calling them back.

Huh?

I am puzzled. It was sold 'as-is' and I did not lie about what I represented.

Now I could have easily ignored his request for a refund, in which he did with very little apology for his "girlfriends" behavior, and moved on my way.

But, for some reason, I have grown. No longer do I feel the need to convince others of their stupid mistakes, ignorance, or blissful behavior.
So, I sucked it up and just gave him his money.
It is very frustrating knowing the good guy, myself, gets screwed.
It was a waste of time and money, as well as his own fault for trying to have a third-rate computer store take a random shot at fixing this without knowing the cost it would involve.

There is my venting, folks.

*Phew*

I feel a bit better.

Graduate School

I have 3 classes left, and 40% of my thesis remaining in order to finalize my Masters of Education degree. Of course, I'll have to defend my thesis, but that won't be any real trouble. But, I am nervous and excited at the same time. To see the goal within reach I always ask myself what will go wrong. Its a bit pessimistic to think this way but NOTHING goes smoothly in life.
By spring I should be ready for graduation, considering all my classes are still on track.
It's exciting to know I have overcome so much...
Yet, I am so nervous to think I am still so far away....

Perception Vs. Reality

I've always felt 'different' than other people. Then again, don't we all? However, in my mind, I could not justify certain actions that I saw others would. For example, I refused to sit quietly in any setting. Whether it was in a church, school, or social function, my urge to socialize was inherent from the beginning. This can be easily chalked up to the hyperactivity as well as the inability to function normally within mainstream societies rules.
And, you would be right...IF it wasn't for the fact that I was aware of it.
I knew I shouldn't be fiddling around in church, squirming in the seats, looking for something to read in the Psalm book, or trying to see what was going on around me.
I was, as other ADD/ADHD children/adults, are. Or am I being too quick to presume this?
Yet, it was my keen insight on my introspective behavior that has enabled me to function "in and out" (as I call it), these social functions.

What do I mean when I say "in and out?"

This is my own terminology explaining what I perceive from reality.
Bear with me...

Whenever I speak with someone that I am highly engrossed in conversation, I tend to over analyze everything. I will start to read the body behavior with the tone of voice and assess what was verbalized to derive meaning.
Sounds a bit complex, huh? It really isn't.
We all do it in everyday form of communication. But I tend to do it more.
This is where the common interruption an ADD individual does during conversation.
We have already done the work upstairs and know where you are going.
So, we want to stop you there. We know primarily what is going to be said-let's just save the time...
I call it a misfiring in the brain. However I leave this real diagnosis to the expert in the field. This my best way to explain my short, quick nature.

Now, after diagnosing all this, I tend to react rather quickly (to save time of course) without choosing alternatives for a response. My pre-calculated answer has been ready to be punched and handed in. No need for delay...

This is where the reality of the situation comes into play. My responses, canned or not, do not have the "PC" filter behind them. I am not racist, sexist, or demeaning in any form, but my thoughts tend to speak for themselves rather than my brain.
This short-sided nature has its benefits and consequences. However that is for another time.

MyDamnChannel

Photoshop is a friggin' maze of perplexity. There is no such thing as 'knowing too much'. My prior boss told me that he once attended a seminar for learning Photoshop, and a random gentlemen took the keynote speaker that he knew all the shortcut keys by heart.
The speaker, without missing a beat, quipped, "You need to get a life."

This is my favorite, comedy skit, tutorial on Photoshop. Enjoy!

TOP GEAR

I LOVE Top Gear, so for anyone reading this random blog/journal, take a look.
You'll get hooked!

Top Gear Season 11 Episode 1 part 1

UFC, MTG and Pizza

Last night I watched UFC 86 Griffin vs. Jackson pay-per-view with my two best friends.

It was a great night. We started out playing Magic the Gathering with our custom creations. Basically we took any character we wanted, from Ronald McDonald to Britney Spears, and made from scratch our own Magic the Gathering cards. All it takes is a printer, glue and some timely due patience. It was a blast playing this enormous pile of politically incorrect and absurd monstrosity. I used to play Magic the Gathering during my college days. This game payed my way through college. While I wasn't the best at the game, I was able to sell these cards through Ebay and travel going to Pro Tour's and regular PTQ's. Those were the days....

Life has that circular pattern in which I am back at where I started: playing this game with my friends at the table, late at night, eating pizza and drinking beer.

The fight came on when we were in between a game, so we had to pause to watch Melvin Guilard beat down some punk. Then back we went to playing, with MGD and Heinken at our side. Good times, good times....

Thankfully the fight was free thanks to my friends roommate who decided to tell Time Warner Cable to let us have free pay-per-views. The only cost to us were the pizza and beer. Not bad for one night of fun. The Griffin-Jackson fight was amazing!
Forrest, I felt, controlled the fight from round 2 till the end. However, I was amazed that Forrest was given the decision and the win considering he is the challenger and needs to take OVER the fight, while Jackson can defend it. I can understand Jackson's defensive nature in the ring during the 3rd and 4th round. It was up to Griffin to TAKE the belt from him. Not saying Griffin NEEDS to be the attacker, but it is more upon the challenger to do so. I am unsure how the scoring factors in with this concept.

Pizza. Yum!

I succumbed to Pizza Hut and all its greatness.
I need to get back in shape. Before marriage, I used to be in great shape. I was running 5k runs quite regularly. Running was my thing. Somewhere, between the injuries and misdirection of focus, I lost my way. I told myself I would focus on school and if running was any hinder that I would stop it. As you well know-it is all or nothing.

Or should I say 'all or nothing' with ADHD people? *smirk*

I've been 'had'!

People will look down upon my reality junkie habits. But, I can't help it. I like some reality shows to see the social aspects of people in certain situations. And because it's mindless television. Forgive me...
So, I feel I've been had. I've been watching Tila Tequilla Shot at Love 2 reality crap show for this season; not religiously but the majority of the shows. Last year's "winner" was scammed, as he claimed, when Tila Fakeness never contacted him and dismissed him quicker than Britney's "marriage".

I missed the finale, so I went searching for the video on-line to watch it. What I saw made me feel very, very stupid. Without a doubt, this finale was set-up. The "winner" turned down Tila in this finale with the worst acting job I've ever seen.

Update...

Whenever I start to write for this 'blog', I am unsure whom I should be writing to/for. I realize this is for my benefit, and trust me, it a majority of a way it is, yet it is also for others out there who have ADD/ADHD. Or, for anyone looking to read a quirky perspective on life. Should I be directing my questions to you? That is IF anyone reads this...

I had a great conversation this weekend with a friend. He has been a teacher for over 20 years and a great mentor in my life-someone I look up to. Our discussion started on my thesis work, in which wasn't pleasant at first since he disagrees with my main source, but later in the evening it turned toward technology. This was a clever ploy (revenge!) on my side as he hates cell phones. Well, I have an Iphone that I used extensively when dealing with technology needs from local people. For him, there are students constantly on the phone, in the classroom, outside in the halls, in the lunchroom, and outside in their cars. It is stuck to their head. My friend HATES what cell phones have done to the form of communication between two adults. In his viewpoint it has deluded real conversation and allowed for fabricated communication with no real substance.

I understand his position, surely I do.

My viewpoint is, much like gun owners, the user not the object is at fault. We have crossed the line into the new technology age where ethics and etiquette are put into question. How do we, as a society, decide what is right or wrong when dealing instances or circumstances that are called into question? Is it fine for an individual to use his/her cell phone at a restaurant? How about in a car while driving? Are e-mails considered a considerate way of sending an invitation or 'Thank-you'?
My stance is that we are on the brink of technology. Where we have started less than a 100 years ago is leveling out, but the adaptation of it into society. The influence it has is the cusp of the beginning dawn or revelation overlapped by the brink of advanced technology. The prevalence of this growth will not be an issue 20-30 years from now, as it comes into mainstream society and commonly accepted. Much like the baby boomers scare of the satellite race, our generation 'X'er's have to deal with the technological advancement. You can look at every decade in the past century and look at the overblown issues that now seem small in hindsight, through our perspective kaleidoscope of change.

Take the issue my friend had recently: It was Mother's Day, and at a family restaurant, he saw mother sitting across from a daughter on her cell phone. She spend the majority of the time ignoring her own mother while conversing with the random person on the other side. Yeah, Happy Mothers' Day Mom! Ugh!

I understand his frustration. I've seen this ignorance for decency or an understanding of etiquette. However, I've explained to my great friend that it is the user, not the object, that should be put at fault. This woman being socially inept and rather rude is at fault here. Her cell phone may have been the activator for her behavior. And, more importantly, 20-30 years from now it may be societal norms to have a bluetooth stuck in your ear, talking to your boss, while eating lunch with your best friend.

What do you think? Post a comment!