Iterating on Light and Dark

Yes, indeed, we are (as a society) due for some form of earth (nay, existence) shattering event:  the kind that strains apart the very fabric of civilization, leaving nothing but the frayed, tattered ends of culture to pine for its once lustrous, cohesive weavings.

Indeed, we are due for an apocalypse, and truly, there are only several kinds of apocalypses we could realistically have:

• Astronomical apocalypse:  bodies from space destroying us all
• War-related apocalypse:  weaponized bodies launched from earth that fall from space to destroy us all
• Zombie apocalypse:  deceased bodies searching for brains to destroy us all
• Robot apocalypse:  metalized, mechanical, soulless bodies bent on destroying us all

Let’s air on the side of realism here and eschew the first two:  I mean, the likelihood that we’ll all die by meteor is, well, astronomical, and if we haven’t managed to kill ourselves already (we had such a quaint acronym for this - “M.A.D.”, which was actually quite ironic if you think about it, and I’m not sure if its creators were very clever or simply oblivious) I’m sure we’ll somehow survive.  Oh no, gentle reader, the truth is, the only realistic apocalypses to be had are either robotic or zombiatic in nature.  In today’s essay, I will describe how Google ™ has demonstrated the only truly concerning apocalypse is of the zombie variety (and thusly, driven me to buy a shotgun).

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Occasionally I’d like to pretend that my posts would be astute or insightful, but they won’t always be.  This post is an example of that.  Today was best summed up by my parting words for my work day.

As I left my desk, I turned to my coworkers and opined, “the internets are hard.”

This actually fostered more conversation than I was expecting considering all I really wanted to do was go home.  Other things brought up:

• “Yeah, what’s the point?”
• “It just seems to keep going.”
• “Does it end?”
• “I don’t really get why.”

It seems flip and all that, but really:  we all understand the Internet as this thing we’re all absolutely dependent on (at least, middle class America and the select other countries) - something that we have actually developed psychological disorders over such as addiction.  It’s supposed to revolutionize the world, provide a source for all information, enrich our lives, etc.  Hell, entire careers and industries focus around it (e.g. my own industry and career).

So what does anyone expect from the Internet?  Is there anything really to expect?  Is it truly about information sharing?  Or is it about communication?  Or is it a good way to find that episode of “24″ you missed because your TiVo decided to not record it?

The internets, indeed.

We’re actually at the end of the break period now for my office.  I can tell because last night I basically had nothing but stress dreams.

Stress dreams are a forte of mine I do quite well.  They’re almost always about work, and almost always about something I can’t quite fix or didn’t quite get done.  My dreams last night were all stress dreams (one actually “followed” me through several interruptions of awakenness.

This one signaled what I knew was impending but hadn’t managed to think about:  today is Sunday, and it’s the day before I have to go to work again.  This is not a bad thing per se:  work is actually something I enjoy a lot.  Instead, it simply means that I’m going to be going back to my regular routine which I’ve somehow managed to have forgotten entirely (or so it seems).

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So, yeah.

(many of my posts will start off this way - not particularly well spoken, but beggars can’t be choosers)

My MacBook Pro was delivered while I was at the gym.  This is not a bad thing.  I come home and a tidy little package was waiting right there for me, which is fantastic.

One of the things I think Apple really does well is creating a gestalt - everything about the unboxing process, about the materials you get, all of it - it’s done in such a way to make the user feel like they’re getting something special.  I can’t imagine this doesn’t in some way aide in generating the “Macolyte” behavior / fan-boy-ism that is oft associated with the Apple brand.

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Anyone who’s known me for about 30 seconds knows that, for the longest time, I’ve been a hard-core advocate of not-Apple products.

I know, I know - how is it that one can legitimately hold such a stance? They’re almost always beautiful. They almost always have some sort of “experience” wrapped around them. And Justin Long is dreamy in ways that no one else can truly be.

(no, he’s not)

Much of my irritation with Apple devices have been of the sort that obstinate geeks such as myself have with technology. Certain types of people, myself included, dislike when choices are explicitly made for you and configurations are obfuscated from you in the interest of “protecting” a user from themselves. I consider myself in that odd nether-area of pro-sumer and professional when it comes to my tech toys, and Apple in many ways does not talk to me as almost a philosophy.

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