The eDark Side

Three months ago, I was lucky if I could find my cell phone. I left the house with it only when my husband reminded me to take it with me. He doesn't go anywhere without his Blackberry, and he has been trying to get me to jump on his techno bandwagon for years. I've resisted, not because I wanted to deny Tom but because I wanted to remain un-wired. I didn't want to be bothered with telephone calls and messages when I was away from my work space.

Today, I've joined the eDark Side. It started with LinkedIn in the early fall. I signed up to see if I could offer any support for recruiting for the company I work for. The HR team convinced me that LinkedIn was the latest rage in recruiting, so I thought I'd see if I could help. Unfortunately, I haven't recruited anyone, and I haven't discovered any other value in LinkedIn yet. But I haven't given up hope.

Next came this blog. As I mentioned in my very first post, the blogsphere forces caught me by surprise. I never imagined myself as a blogger, but here I am. And so far, I'm planning to stay. I really enjoy the writing, even if nobody reads it.

Shortly after the blog took shape, I turned to Facebook. Tom started up his Facebook page a few years ago, and I was honestly turned off by the whole notion. Who cares? I thought. But for whatever reason, I tuned in and turned on. For the first couple of days as a newborn Facebooker, I was obsessed. I loved checking out all my new friends' profiles and statuses, and changing my own. I was a little disturbed by how consuming it was. But my husband, in his old-pro wisdom, assured me it wears off after awhile, and he was right. Now, there are days I don't even check Facebook. Not too many in a row though.

I often wonder why Facebook intrigues me. I was happy not being connected. I was content not knowing what my "friends" were doing every day. I didn't mind not being in touch. But since I don't have much time or space for a real social life these days, I'm guessing that Facebook must be filling some void.

So what's next? I'm afraid it might be a Blackberry. My latest plan is to get Tom a Blackberry Storm and transfer his current BB to me. Once again, I can't explain the change of techno heart. I can only admit that I like it.

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Yesterday, when I was flying to CA, I realized that I forgot to charge my cell phone before I left. So I planned to charge it in the airport. But when I got ready to plug in, I discovered that I had a Nintendo charger with me, not a Razr charger. This was vexing, for I needed to call Romy to find out if she was picking me up at the airport or if I was taking a train to her place. The solution of course: a pay phone. I haven't used a pay phone in years, and this seemingly simple activity required me to get change for a dollar, spend the whole dollar on the long-distance call, and call back two more times when Romy didn't answer (requiring change for two more dollars). I now pledge to give my cell phone the attention and respect it deserves. Tom shall never need to remind me to carry it -- fully charged -- again.

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