Technology can steer you wrong
Today is Cyber Monday, the online answer to Black Friday. I had two items that I wanted to purchase during these sale days: a pocket point and shoot digital camera and a GPS navigational device for my car. I did my research online and decided on a model for each device. I found a great price on the camera and bought it online Thursday. It should get to me this week. I had a hard time finding a good price on the GPS device.
On Saturday, I drove forever and a mile to get to the place where my friend Gail was getting ready for her wedding. I had my real camera in hand to shoot the getting ready process. I met them at the salon (where another friend did the wedding party's hair) using directions I'd printed from Yahoo. Then I followed them to the hall for the wedding and reception. I realized about half-way through the reception that I had no idea where I was. I had not printed out directions from the reception back to my house. D'oh! At that point, I really wished that I'd bought a GPS device. How marvelous to just get in the car and ask the GPS how to get home.
By the time I was ready to leave, there was only one person from my side of town left at the reception. I thought about asking him if I could follow him back to the highway when he left. But before I could get around to that, the bride's parents (dear, dear friends of mine) asked if I wanted to stay at their house instead of driving all the way back home. Not knowing how long the reception would last and that people are always asking me to spend the night when I'm down there, I had brought overnight stuff with me just in case. So, I followed my friends back to their house and stayed in the bride's former bedroom while she was off on the first night of her honeymoon.
I spent the following day with my friends and whoever popped into their house, mostly family from out of town. I was treated to one of my all-time favorite experiences later in the day when the son and father played guitar together. I used to go to bookstudy at their house. Every once in a while, I would hang out afterwards and listen to them play together. It's a magical experience. Except, it's gotten better. The son is now a man with a lot more confidence. It used to be like pulling teeth to get him to play in front of people and you could hang it up if you thought he was going to sing, too. But yesterday, he sang and there was no shutting him up until he had to leave the house to give a talk. My only regret was that they played a bunch of OLD country songs which I didn't know and so couldn't sing along to. (Do you know how frustrating that was for me?!?!) I grew up listening to Motown, not Country & Western. (Isn't it weird how the people in my family can be such great dancers, but not be able to sing or play instruments at all? Surely with our rhythm, one of us could have at least played a percussion instrument? Thank goodness my immediate family inherited a tiny bit of vocal ability from my mother.)
I also got to hang out with the oldest daughter who now has three sons of her own. It's been difficult to get with her since she became a mother. So, it was really nice to watch her kids play and feel like part of her life again. Ok, this is really off the subject, but she made an awesome soup for lunch. I normally hate vegetable soup. But her soup was beet based (since she's married to a Russian) rather than tomato based. I have never eaten a bowl of vegetable soup and not left some veggies behind in the bowl until yesterday. Of course, it also helps that she didn't add any carrots. I just can't eat soggy carrots.
So, I got to thinking about what a great day it was, hanging out with their whole family. I realized that if I'd had that GPS device, I probably would have just relied on it to get me back to the highway and home. I doubt that I would have taken them up on their offer to spend the night. And even though it would have given me the correct directions, in that situation, technology would have steered me wrong.
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On Saturday, I drove forever and a mile to get to the place where my friend Gail was getting ready for her wedding. I had my real camera in hand to shoot the getting ready process. I met them at the salon (where another friend did the wedding party's hair) using directions I'd printed from Yahoo. Then I followed them to the hall for the wedding and reception. I realized about half-way through the reception that I had no idea where I was. I had not printed out directions from the reception back to my house. D'oh! At that point, I really wished that I'd bought a GPS device. How marvelous to just get in the car and ask the GPS how to get home.
By the time I was ready to leave, there was only one person from my side of town left at the reception. I thought about asking him if I could follow him back to the highway when he left. But before I could get around to that, the bride's parents (dear, dear friends of mine) asked if I wanted to stay at their house instead of driving all the way back home. Not knowing how long the reception would last and that people are always asking me to spend the night when I'm down there, I had brought overnight stuff with me just in case. So, I followed my friends back to their house and stayed in the bride's former bedroom while she was off on the first night of her honeymoon.
I spent the following day with my friends and whoever popped into their house, mostly family from out of town. I was treated to one of my all-time favorite experiences later in the day when the son and father played guitar together. I used to go to bookstudy at their house. Every once in a while, I would hang out afterwards and listen to them play together. It's a magical experience. Except, it's gotten better. The son is now a man with a lot more confidence. It used to be like pulling teeth to get him to play in front of people and you could hang it up if you thought he was going to sing, too. But yesterday, he sang and there was no shutting him up until he had to leave the house to give a talk. My only regret was that they played a bunch of OLD country songs which I didn't know and so couldn't sing along to. (Do you know how frustrating that was for me?!?!) I grew up listening to Motown, not Country & Western. (Isn't it weird how the people in my family can be such great dancers, but not be able to sing or play instruments at all? Surely with our rhythm, one of us could have at least played a percussion instrument? Thank goodness my immediate family inherited a tiny bit of vocal ability from my mother.)
I also got to hang out with the oldest daughter who now has three sons of her own. It's been difficult to get with her since she became a mother. So, it was really nice to watch her kids play and feel like part of her life again. Ok, this is really off the subject, but she made an awesome soup for lunch. I normally hate vegetable soup. But her soup was beet based (since she's married to a Russian) rather than tomato based. I have never eaten a bowl of vegetable soup and not left some veggies behind in the bowl until yesterday. Of course, it also helps that she didn't add any carrots. I just can't eat soggy carrots.
So, I got to thinking about what a great day it was, hanging out with their whole family. I realized that if I'd had that GPS device, I probably would have just relied on it to get me back to the highway and home. I doubt that I would have taken them up on their offer to spend the night. And even though it would have given me the correct directions, in that situation, technology would have steered me wrong.
[and now a word from our sponsors...]
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