How Swine Flu Is Spread

Bleah.

Potluck #57 UR N ID E 8

After attending the excellent "Teen Speak" workshop this week I have a gnawing uncomfortable feeling in the pit of my stomach. No, the cheese cubes were fine...it was the idea from the slide show - I believe it was a comment from the Library of Congress librarian, James H. Billington - that once only adults are speaking a language correctly, that language is dead. This truly frightening concept is reinforced almost daily every time I speak to a person under the age of 25. And (get ready to bite your fist) these are *college educated* young adults. How did accumulating a basic vocabulary escape them? Words I assume are common vernacular: "nepotism," "marsupial," or "inordinately" were actually questioned by younger staff members here at our branch. And forget even spelling these words, much less knowing the meaning of them. Spell check dumbs down another victim! While studies show that teens are communicating more, the quality of communication is suffering. Maybe it's not important. At the risk of sounding like a scared old person shaking her fist from the front porch, I'm worried about texting and the limited vocabulary of young people. Nevermind writing a coherent, grammatically correct sentence. Can they communicate their thoughts to other human beings making the most of whatever language they speak? I realize that texting, by virtue of its format, is basically shorthand. But when it's the only way a person can write, then it becomes a problem. Yes, I've texted. I think it's a terrific form of communication, especially if you don't really want to spend a lot of time talking. Most text messages are short, with no elaboration. Fine. What's troubling is when frequent texters disregard traditional language in favor of "blurbs." Also bothersome is the addictive aspect of teen texting. How many parents have howled when their kids bring their cell phones to the dinner table and ignore the rest of the family so they can tell Justin what game they just "pwned"? My advice to parents: learn the lingo. Just as it's a good idea to know your kids' friends, it's important to understand their language even if it sounds like Klingon to you. For me, texting will always be just a way to get in touch with my son or for use in emergencies. Beyond that, texting falls into the category of annoying and downright obnoxious. During Hurricane Ike, when a downed power line caused the tree next door to burst into flames, not gonna lie, texting came in handy. But I am a MOM first. And for us, safety is more important than what is merely annoying. I am 100% in favor of banning the use of cell phones while driving -- and not just for teens but for everyone who thinks they're more coordinated than they actually are. And that includes YOU. The statistics - over 13,000 accidents and almost 130 deaths, all related to cell phone usage while driving- speak volumes. The NYT article punctuated my point and maybe the U.S. Librarian of Congress's as well. It's ok to "adopt a second language" but before you do, shouldn't you get a good grasp of your primary language first?

Potluck #56: Twitter? I Say Shoot The Bird

The thing about little twittering bird sounds is that after awhile, it just becomes a pointless, humming NOISE sort of like a migraine. I guess I'm one of those stick-in-the-mud'ders who just doesn't get the whole Twitter craze. I'm all for new ways to communicate but only if there's some real message involved. Otherwise, you're just playing with a toy and taking up somebody else's time as well as your own. Sometimes I think that a lot of new technology is just our way of rationalizing the money and effort spent beating everyone else at the game. What can I do with this new $500 gizmo? I know! I'll annoy all my friends by telling them every little thing I do all day! You could say that it's sort an electronic haiku minus the cool zen and a lot less creativity. Haiku for dummies! Okay, so I did opt to open a Twitter account to enjoy the full Twitter experience. I got bored after my first entry. I've read that Twitter was not really intended for the average user but more as an internal communication form within say, a company or organization. That makes more sense. At least there's a reason to say, "I'm in a meeting with the CFO at noon." But seriously? To post an entry every 15 minutes about what you're eating, what you're watching on television? No one is THAT interesting! Or interested. I did a search for Etsy, a website I frequent which features artist-made items. Many Etsy artists twitter about newly-made items up for sale. If you were a fan of a particular artist, I suppose that would be helpful. I also visited Celebrity Tweet which was entertaining but I can only pretend to care about Andy Dick for....no, honestly, I don't care about Andy Dick at ALL. And that's really the bottom line: what do you NEED to know? I realize that Twittering is sort of "fast-food blogging" for a generation of folks who are too rushed to process information that lasts longer than 140 characters, but for my money, if it's something I really want to know, I can wait for the unabridged version. If pop culture guru Marshall McLuhan is correct and "the medium is the message," then the message is clear: Get a life....and then keep it to yourself.

Trek Yourself

Probably the creepiest thing you'll ever see.

Yes I did, and if you MUST see it, click here.

Texas Secession: Why The Rest Of The Country Thinks We're Idiots

"Don't Mess With Texas"?? I think we're taking care of that ourselves.

Why Can't You Be More Like US??

Took me a couple of days to process this news before I could comment but you know Secret Asian Girl has something to say about THIS. Perhaps the the most tragic part is that I'm not at all surprised to hear this kind of talk. I have, after all, lived in Texas for over 40 years. If you didn't view the clip, Texas Representative (R) Betty Brown is reacting to an Asian man explaining how some Asian American citizens had difficulties voting at the last election because their ID's, with phonetically altered or transliteration versions of Chinese names, didn't match voter lists. Ms Brown suggested that Asians replace their birth names so that it would be, "easier for Americans to deal with." Whaaat?? I'm NOT American?? Dang, I thought that being BORN in America would have fixed that little problem but apparently not. How inconsiderate of some of us not to cleave to the preferences of "real" Americans. Perhaps I should go get me some of that plastic surgery to correct my horribly disfigured eyes. Wouldn't want to OFFEND any "real Americans"! I think most enlightened minds would agree that this woman's thoughtless comment is a serious lapse in intelligence and is probably garnering more negative attention than anticipated. She probably thought she was giving a helpful hint to a poor, ignorant immigrant. Perhaps in gratitude for her kind suggestion she should be made an "honorary Asian American" complete with a new name: Hao So Dum. Can you pronounce THAT?

Click here to send an e-mail to Texas State Representative (R) Betty Brown.

Potluck #55: "Ok, If Your Mom Is On Facebook It's Not Cool Anymore"

Yep, that's exactly what my son said to me when I told him that I was opening a Facebook account. Singlehandedly, I have rendered "the" technological social phenomenon of the past decade "uncool." Hmmph! In fact, he even sent me a facebook email repeating the same sentiment. Fine. Well, I have to admit, I probably won't use it (remember reading *that* when I started this blog?) It was easy to access, easy to add items to my profile. Not the most exciting of pages, but maybe I'll improve it with time. For some reason, Facebook seems more intimidating to me, there's less anonymity than with a blog. Immediately after uploading my contact book a list of "possible friends" showed up. No surprises. My cooler, technologically advanced friends all have accounts and my friends who are still struggling with e-mail do not. At my age, there's a wide spectrum of folks between these two categories. Some are always eager to "plug in" to the newest form of communication and others....well, let's just say that for some people, the internet (and especially scenarios where there is more personal interaction) will always be a frightening mystery. I fall into the cautiously curious category. I probably won't use all those silly applications like growing trees, pets, cyber-fairies, etc., but I did add Shelfari to my page. Anyone who knows me knows I love books and that would be an integral part of my profile. How much more personal info I'll add is dependent on how confident I am at the time, and, now that I know I have the golden touch of "uncoolness," who knows what other hot, trendy bubbles I can burst. Look out, Twitter!!

Boldly Smell Like No One Has Smelled Before...

This has even ME freaked out. I'm thinking it's a joke, but having attended as many ST conventions as I have in my life...maybe not. With the new movie opening May 8 (yes, I will be at the midnight showing the night before) here's a way to smell like your favorite Star Trek character. If you can't read the text, the description on "Tiberious" (if you don't know what this refers to, stop reading now) says, "...a casual yet commanding cologne spiked with freshness and sensuality. Citron, black pepper and cedar create refreshingly clear top notes...Tiberious Cologne for men is difficult to define and impossible to refuse. In any universe." SNORT. This is hilarious! "Red Shirt" is a real tongue-in-cheek reference since everyone knows the "red shirts" (security detail on ST classic) are the first to die in any episode. "For the man who..revels in being alive today." This is pure cake. These "fragrances" actually debuted on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno a few months ago as a joke but Genki fragrances actually are distributing the colognes (about $25 each) with plans to also include "Pon Farr" in the future. True fans need no explanation. Personally, that's the one I want. Live long....and smolder, baby. (Insert Barry White music here)

New Fave Quote

"Nobody knows the age of the human race, but everybody

agrees that it is old enough to know better."

Anonymous

Sam Playing Footsie

Ever ecologically-minded, here is Sam, trying to convince me to

reduce my carbon footprint. Seriously, only wear white socks at my house if you

want them pulled off by a very playful Sheltie.