Why Facebook is Ruining High School Reunions…

My 30^th high school reunion was a couple of years ago and my wife’s reunion is happening this summer.  Normally a reunion is a great time for everyone to catch up with what has happened to our old friends.  Who made it, who didn’t, who has grand kids, and who is still single.  It’s a time to compare and take stock of where we were and where are now.

Before Facebook, many of us would meet and every 10 years and be surprised (or not) by what had happened in our old friend’s lives.  How many of us were both excited and dreading the anticipation of our high school reunions?  The shock of how we have changed the addition of weight, the loss of hair, the extra lifelines (wrinkles) and the overall emotion of reconnecting were usually great.

However, all that has changed completely in the digital age.  Facebook has tainted how we approach our “every decade” meetings now.  It is no longer a surprise how anyone looks as you can just check their profile picture (unless it’s doppelganger week).  Every child, grandchild’s accomplishments have been described in detail on that person’s daily status updates. 

Don’t get me wrong about Facebook and its original intention of connecting long lost classmates.  I think it’s great to be able to be in contact with friends that have drifted away.  I’m glad to know that my old high school friend Tom in Missouri is now looking for a Black Cow to complete his virtual farm.  I’m also happy that Jim in Georgia is still sarcastic as he was in high school. 

Nevertheless, there is something to be said for seeing the faces of old friends who have disappeared only to reappear into your life every ten years.  To look at wonder on how they survived to adulthood or to comment about the trophy wife they married.  Those days are forever gone, and I for one am a bit sad about that.   

An Unhappy Anniversary

I remember the day very well. It was a Friday and the sun was shining. I made my way to the office and grabbed a cup of coffee as I usually did. Started small talk with my work colleagues but there was a bit of melancholy in everyone’s voice. We all knew that for many of us, this was our last day at work. We all spent the day exchanging information, promising to stay in touch and wish each other good luck in our future job search. We signed our exit papers in Human Resources, collected our last check, and grabbed our boxes of personal belongs to head to our cars.

This anniversary is different from others. I have worked in and out of the high tech industry for years. My resume has had me in many different jobs for the last twenty years however; I’ve spent the last seven with my last employer.

We all knew the economy was tough and that it might take a little while to find the next job. Nevertheless, as the days continued, the jobs didn’t appear. How many resumes do you need to send out before your frustration begins to take its toll?

Today’s news that the jobless unemployment claims have risen again is not encouraging. It was hardly unexpected but still depressing. I don’t know the fix for this current situation we are experiencing. I don’t know if there is a fix at all. But, being the optimist I like to think I am, I believe that everything is cyclical and that we just need to wait for the upswing in the cycle.

Unlike many anniversaries, this one will be celebrated quietly. I will try to look at what I have and hope for better times ahead.

Mother’s Day, Again…?

Actually, this post has been long overlooked by me.  I was doing a quick search for Mothers on my site and did not find a post concerning the day we all need to be celebrating.  As a father who blogs, (not nearly enough!) I have a great appreciation for the other sex and their contributions to raising our children.

I’ve had the opportunity to have several mother’s in my life.  Obviously my own mother, who raised a couple of sons without much training considering she was an only child.  I maybe biased, but she did a pretty good job of getting my brother and I into adulthood. 

I have also married a couple of women (not at the same time, that’d be wrong…) who have been great mothers.  My first wife, with whom I had the great pleasure of raising two beautiful daughters.  And my current wife who with her own daughter has made for an interesting “female heavy” household.   

So, let me join the chorus that all men need to be shouting.  Thank you ladies for being the mother’s that many of us dad’s would be lost without.

Happy Mother’s Day….

Why We Blog, Revisited…

Almost a year ago, I wrote a post titled “Why Do We Blog?” and got some great responses.  I wrote the post at a time when my life was much different than it is now.  A year ago, though I was fast approaching unemployment, my optimism was high.  Who would have thought that a college educated professional would have a hard time getting employed again.  But, here I sit still waiting for something. 

So why do we blog?  Or better yet, in my case, why do I write?  I think I continue to do it as I did when I first started a blog a couple of years ago.  You write because you want to have a voice.  Your own voice and not someone else’s.  Not your wife, or husband, your boss or your kids voice, but your own. 

I think WeaselMommasaid it best in the comments of that post; “I do it because as a full time Mom, I have nothing that is my own. My time, my things and even my clothing wind up being shared or borrowed without permission by my family.  My blog gives me something that is mine alone. They can read it or be a part of it, but it is mine.”

I need writing, whether it is this blog (which I am woefully behind in updating) or those articles that I write for web content (thank you to those who click open them) to keep my sanity.  Though I love the contact I have with other writers, its the pure joy of having my words, my thoughts, and my ideas written out. 

So for those who are still out there ( I can hear you breathing), why do you continue to blog?  What has changed for you since you started blogging?  Have you looked at your writing differently or how you approach blogging in general? 

A Day in the Life…

 6:30 -  Awake to the sound of a shower going.  Sounds like a little rainstorm, just inside the house.  The wife is finishing up getting ready for work.  I roll over and blissfully fall back asleep. 

6:45 – The wife gently wakes me with a kiss goodbye and reminds me to have a great day.  Got to love that woman who keeps me grounded.  Got to remember her birthday this year…

7:30 – Begin to roll over in bed and contemplate the day.  Not much excitment planned for the day.  Stumble out of bed, head to the shower, inspect the soon to be 50 year old body for damage and aging.  Soak my head for 10 minutes in the shower to shake the cobwebs.

8:00 – I get dressed in shorts and a t-shirt (this is Southern California) and head out the door with the dog to meet with my Coffee Consortium at the patio of the local shopping center.  We all b.s. about the economy, jobs, money, how it was in the day, kids, grand kids (them) and drink our coffee.

9:00 – Head home with the dog after way too many stops.  This dog needs check out every damn bush!  Head upstairs and turn the computer on.

9:10  – 10:30 – Answer email, check cigar websites, update a Facebook status.  Basically goofing around for about an hour.  Then off to serious work.  The job hunt.  I’ve got about a dozen sites I check on to look for the latest in employment.  So far not much luck.

11:00 – 12:00 – Head to the gym and try to work out my frustration that finding a “friggin” job is so difficult.  Probably good for an additional couple of miles on the treadmill.

1:00 – 4:00 – Spend this time writing articles.  It is amazing what you can write about if you put the effort in.  Who knew I could write about allergies and dust mites? 

5:00 – 10:00 – Family time.  Dinner, time to talk with the wife and girls about their days of work and school.  Eventually one of the girls will ask:  

“What did you do today Dad?”