"But Charlie, don’t forget what happened to the man who suddenly got everything he always wanted…He lived happily ever after."
— Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (1971)
Push Button Blues
The Internet makes me sad sometimes. I’m sure this isn’t a unique experience. For all its conveniences, the Internet has made most everything too available. I find myself feeling as though I’m “wasting time” if I’m not consuming information. I should be reading, I should be watching. There are so many books and articles and websites and comments on blogs I haven’t read. There are so many streaming episodes and movies on Netflix and viral videos on YouTube.
The first step to solving any problem is admitting the problem exists. So I’m happy that I’m able to recognize it and maybe be a bit nicer to myself. I can’t read everything. I can’t watch everything. I shouldn’t read everything. I shouldn’t watch everything.
I’m going to be that parent who laments the good old days to her kid. The pre-Internet days when we watched MTV with the VCR ready to record our favorite video when it finally came on. When there was more waiting and planning and thinking. And more longing. Perhaps that’s the part I miss most.
Post NaPoWriMo
This was my second time participating in the write-a-poem-a-day-in-April challenge. It felt easier this year. My words were closer to the surface. I didn’t have to do so much excavation (which isn’t a bad thing, by any means — just different).
I have a lot to look forward to now. In a week, I’ll be done with my teaching obligations until summer term when I’ll begin teaching an online creative writing class, which makes me very happy.
I also have some trips forthcoming — Book Expo America in New York, The Wesleyan Writers Conference in Connecticut, a trip to the New England coast in August. So many experiences to make me full of gratitude for this life.
