The Internet is down this morning, no Slingbox, no Skype, no email and no online games. It seems so odd that something so new ( it started becoming mainstream in the mid 90’s) has become so important in my life. Obviously since you are reading this – it is working again, but I want you to ponder a bit about how dependent you have become on this relatively new form of social connection. I know that being in China definitely skews my opinion and makes this medium way more important than it would be in the U.S. I check my account balances, pay my bills, read news, listen to news, send gifts, and flowers, download the latest Survivor show, NPR Car Talk podcasts, and new audio books, upload blogs and photos, play online games and look up information. (last night we looked up the definition for the word “invigilator” an English word the Chinese use and I had never used- it means "proctor").
I left off my biggest Internet need and the one that depresses me the most when it is down – my social connection to my friends and family. So say a couple of words of prayer that this isolation doesn’t (didn’t) last too long and ponder a bit on your Internet dependency. Is it Good, Bad or just a Tool? - like a car or refrigerator? Granted, it would be hard to live without those modern tools but still doable. I am not sure if I could psychologically make it over here without my daily Internet connections.
Side Note: You don’t see many pet dogs– but the Chinese must have a lot of pet birds because you will find them hanging in the trees singing on the weekends when their owners have taken them out for a “walk”.
