Comments on: A Prophet Unawares http://www.thedarkglass.net/2008/05/06/a-prophet-unawares/ Trying to nail down the shifting signifiers Fri, 27 Jan 2012 20:23:19 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Simon http://www.thedarkglass.net/2008/05/06/a-prophet-unawares/comment-page-1/#comment-3142 Simon Fri, 09 May 2008 15:28:30 +0000 http://www.thedarkglass.net/2008/05/06/a-prophet-unawares/#comment-3142 SLOW DOWN! Life screams that all the damn time, but people are always in too much of a hurry to see that message. Most of us are little more than slaves to the clock. I hate to quote Star Trek but in one of the movies the baddie says to Picard "Time is the fire in which we burn." That quote seems very true to me. A few years ago I saw an ad for a Nokia cell phone/PDA which boasted functionality that would allow you to be "at work anywhere." It showed a woman in a business suit in a train working and said something like "Now you don't have to wait until you're in the office to begin work." The ad disgusted me because the commute is YOUR time. It's the time to read a book, listen to your iPod, stare out of the window, close your eyes and enjoy a little you time. The thought that this rare opportunity to be disconnected could not be severed from you really troubled me. I'm glad Ethan re-enforced that message to you. After all, Ferris Bueller said "Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it." :-) SLOW DOWN! Life screams that all the damn time, but people are always in too much of a hurry to see that message. Most of us are little more than slaves to the clock. I hate to quote Star Trek but in one of the movies the baddie says to Picard “Time is the fire in which we burn.” That quote seems very true to me.

A few years ago I saw an ad for a Nokia cell phone/PDA which boasted functionality that would allow you to be “at work anywhere.” It showed a woman in a business suit in a train working and said something like “Now you don’t have to wait until you’re in the office to begin work.” The ad disgusted me because the commute is YOUR time. It’s the time to read a book, listen to your iPod, stare out of the window, close your eyes and enjoy a little you time. The thought that this rare opportunity to be disconnected could not be severed from you really troubled me.

I’m glad Ethan re-enforced that message to you. After all, Ferris Bueller said “Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.” :-)

]]> By: Roger Green http://www.thedarkglass.net/2008/05/06/a-prophet-unawares/comment-page-1/#comment-3141 Roger Green Fri, 09 May 2008 14:53:48 +0000 http://www.thedarkglass.net/2008/05/06/a-prophet-unawares/#comment-3141 There was some piece on ABC News this week about Americans fitting 31 hours of stuff in 24 hour days by multitasking; whether we were multitasking WELL was not addressed. Don't know if it will help, but I find having something to read when I'm standing in line (usually a magazine for that stop-and-start experience) creates the difference for me between "Why don't those people in front of me (and the teller/checkout person) HURRY UP?!" and "Ooh, here's a chance to get through last week's Newsweek." There was some piece on ABC News this week about Americans fitting 31 hours of stuff in 24 hour days by multitasking; whether we were multitasking WELL was not addressed.
Don’t know if it will help, but I find having something to read when I’m standing in line (usually a magazine for that stop-and-start experience) creates the difference for me between “Why don’t those people in front of me (and the teller/checkout person) HURRY UP?!” and “Ooh, here’s a chance to get through last week’s Newsweek.”

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