Understanding equals very no
Catching another meme, this time passed on by Lemming. This one took me forever, for some reason.
List five things that people in your circle of friends or peer group are wild about, but you can't really understand the fuss over.
- Cell phones: I know Hugh already mentioned this one, so it feels like a bit of a cheat. Still, my hatred of cell phones borders on the pathological. The few times I have wished I had one (most recently on the weekly veterinary trips to Columbus), what I have really wanted was a pay phone. Sadly, since cell phones have attained ubiquity, pay phones have begun to go the way of the dodo, putting even more pressure on us holdouts. Dear Husband is begging me to get one for the car once I start doing a daily hour-plus commute, and I may have to give in on it, but I won't keep it on, and have no intention of telling anyone the number. I like being unreachable every now and then.
- Video games, full stop: I used to like playing Quake with the guys at work (although I never got good at it, and it was largely a social thing), and I remember thinking Asteroids was pretty cool when it came out. Other than that, though, I just can't make myself care. I never had an Atari or Nintendo or Xbox, don't ever plan to, and just don't get the appeal.
- Atkins/South Beach/whatever dieting: I have come to the conclusion that the only people who can stick to these diets didn't really like food all that much to begin with. Carbs are not evil, but lots of the low-carb crap that people are putting out definitely is. My mom was on South Beach last time she visited(may still be), and Dear Husband and I bought some low-carb bread to accommodate her. It tasted awful, and we only used it for sandwiches once before stashing it in a cupboard and forgetting about it. Two months later, the bread had neither gone stale nor turned moldy. This is not food.
- We, Oxygen, Lifetime: Gender-based networks in general leave me cold. I'll admit, I do watch Spike TV occasionally ("the network for men"), but that's mostly because they air Star Trek reruns constantly (evidently it's "the network for geeky men"). I resent the idea, though, that just because I have breasts I am automatically going to be drawn to whatever piece of "rescuing my daughter from her husband" or "chick retribution against the abusive boyfriend" or "disease-of-the-week starring Meredith Baxter" crap they've cobbled together. Also, Sue Johansen (the Oxygen Network sex guru) gives me the wiggins.
- Seinfeld: There. I said it. OK, the show had its moments, sure. When you tally it up, though, it only had about 3 really funny seasons spreadh over an 8-year run. The rest ranged from mildly amusing to meh to virtually unwatchable. By 1997, the only two funny episodes were "The Serenity Now" and "The Frogger." By then, the characters had morphed from being "funny to watch, but I'm glad I've never met them" to just unlikeable. Worse, the show spawned a whole generation of sitcoms about neurotic annoying people, often featuring comics who can't act. Enough already. Bring on the flames.
So, that's it from me. I think most folks have already gotten this meme by now (except maybe Swankette?), so I'm going to throw it out there into the general ether, and see who picks it up.
garden progress: Veggie garden tilled, tomatoes and peppers planted.
house progress: I ran the new phone line, Joe replaced the water filter
what's for dinner? Chicken in some incarnation, probably with leftover mashed sweet potatoes and asparagus.
posted by Alison @ 9:44 AM
7 comments
7 Comments:
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At 1:04 PM,
tommyspoon held forth...
- And if Joe needs any reinforcements in his struggle to get you to have a cellular phone in your car, he can call on me anytime.
Get it? "Call" on me? Thank you! I'll be here all week!
I think your beef is really with bad cellular phone behavior, instead of the phones themselves. Yes, there are real idiots out there who abuse their phones (and this observation is generously applied to both genders). But the next time you break down on the side of the road in the midst of a storm, you'll be very happy when you see those reception bars creep up.
Just take my advice and buy the cheapest phone and plan you can get. You'll really thank me. Really. -
At 3:40 PM,
lemming held forth...
- Tommy's story about how cell phones and 9/11 is persuasive - still don't have one, but he's made the best argument yet, IMHO.
You and I have both hit Swankette with this one - after learning that she shares my feelinsg about Brad Pitt, I'm curious to read the others. -
At 3:49 PM,
Alison held forth...
- Actually, it really is with the whole cell phone ethos. It's an objection to the assumption that everyone must always be available to everyone. Instant messaging, phone calls to confirm that I got emails, dozens of 24-hour news channels having to invent news because gods forbid I should have to survive between 3 and 4 am without hearing the latest about Michael Jackson. There's such a thing as being too connected. Combine that with the rudeness of many cell phone users, and it makes me want to become Amish.
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At 3:51 PM,
Alison held forth...
- I haven't seen Tommy's cell phones/9-11 thing. Link, please?
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At 12:24 AM,
Swankette held forth...
- I caved to the cell-phone craze when I was simultaneously living in three places at once, while nowhere (crashing with Sweetie in his VERY SMALL one bedroom apartment) whilst simultaneously job searching.
Here are the two benefits it provides to me:
1. Because it offers caller ID for every call (and I've got customized rings set-up) if you aren't someone I want to talk to I'm not answering the phone. I'm not even going near the phone in some instances.
2. I've got it set up with a Portland phone number, so friends and family who have not given in to the craze yet can still call me without incurring long-distance charges. (Everyone I know in Seattle that may want to call me has a cell-phone, so that's a non-issue) -
At 6:59 AM,
tommyspoon held forth...
- Al,
To sum up: for four hours on September 11, 2001, I had no idea where my wife was. I didn't know if she was injured, stranded somewhere, nothing. The kind of panic I experienced during those four hours I would not wish on my worst enemy. Ever. So when Sweetie and I were reunited later that day I laid down my first (and so far only) ultimatum in our marriage: You will carry a cellular phone so you can contact me in case of an emergency. And she has ever since.
Aside from calling me when she gets to the Metro station so I can pick her up and bring her home, it remains in her bag unused. But I am very glad she has it, and I think she is too.
So, like I said before, get a cheap phone and a cheap plan. Program a few numbers in it so you can call Joe with a single button press, and then leave it in your bag. You can even leave it off. Just remember to charge it every once in a while. -
At 2:41 PM,
lemming held forth...
- Al - so there's Tom's story. :-)
Ask him for more detail this weekend. Maybe it's 'cos he's an actor, but when I heard Tommy's tale, it made me worry and at least look into cell phone plans, a big step for me.