Technology is a beautiful thing; it really is.
It would be almost impossible to live without it. Fire is technology. Clothing is technology. My toothbrush is technology. Without technology I wouldn’t have a pillow to sleep on, would smell absolutely horrible, couldn’t paint or play guitar, and I wouldn’t have a job, let alone be able to get there.
I don’t have a huge issue with technology, and yet I suggested this challenge. I enjoy technology (medicine, sewing, cookery, and on and on and on), but I have a problem when technology stands between people, or harms them, rather than helping us or bringing us together.
For this challenge, I decided to embark on a series of technology-reduced dates. Technology was necessary for each of them (the most basic technologies including paper-making, the printing press, fire, the wheel, etc), but was not the focus of any of them. I’ve gotten tired of movies, television and even music being the focus of my social interactions, as such consumption does nothing to bring me closer to the people I’m there with. Passive entertainment be damned:
Date #1: Food and Books and Heart-To-Hearts
To celebrate the birthday of the best friend, we enjoyed in a quiet evening of food and literature (we didn’t even listen to music, people). The best friend and I are probably the absolute worst for engaging in passive entertainment . The first months of our friendship were based around movie nights, which were thankfully followed by late hours of talking so that we actually got to know each other.
Sharing the couch and reading naturally led to wonderful conversation, with topics including friendship, relationships, marriage and sex. I haven’t felt that close to the best friend in a long time; time well spent.
Date #2: Saturday Morning Breakfast
As mentioned in I Always Wanted To Be Claudia, I enjoyed a wonderful breakfast with a lovely woman from my church. I’ve been platono-crushing on her from afar, and it was great to be able to sit across the table from her and get to know her a bit more. Plus, we met at a breakfast place 1/2 a block away, which meant I got to walk and reduce my transportation technology!
Date #3: Byzantine Winter Festival
Miss Sarah and I checked out the 2010 Deep Freeze Festival, put on by Arts on The Ave.
It was so great! A little arts market, some Ukrainian dancing, skating (we forgot ours), ice sculptures, snow sculptures, tipis, and horse and wagon rides! I bought a couple of super awesome wine-cork-cork-boards, loved looking at houses on the wagon ride, and really just enjoyed seeing a beautiful community at its best.
(Plus we did a little thrift-store shopping and I got some wine glasses for fancy-juice drinking)
Date #4: Bistro, Bridget, & Brains
And lastly, tonight, Bridget and I met up for coffee at Bistro 112 (and by coffee I mean that she had coffee and I had samosas and a brownie and juice), chatted and just enjoyed each other’s company. I love meeting up with Bridget; it seems like we never run out of things to talk about. Work, church, school, sociology, psychology and a dash of generalized complaining about things, our options are really endless. She’s ridiculously smart, and has a giant heart, and complains about a lot of the same things as me. It’s always a wonderful time, really.
Jennifer
jenny.bullet.shooter
heathercrobertson
sarajane
jensara
stephanieelisabeth
deregibus14
