I've given this some thought for several weeks now and decided to try this out on a self-imposed experiment of mine. I don't know if it'll work or if I have the will power to see it through but it'll be like a time capsule I'm putting myself through. Something different to try my hands on for a whole year. What is it you say? Well, it's an all news blackout for me....for a year. Practically on any news.
Starting on July 25, 2011 on a Monday I will NOT allow myself access to any news information whether it's from my truck radio, television, newspapers, magazines, internet, and even through my blog comments. Any news (sans the weather on the internet) whether its politics, world news, local news, and so on. This may include accessing any deaf-related news as well only because I may inadvertently pick up some outside news along the way, however. It's the day to day news I'm attempting to avoid rather than deaf news. This experiment of mine might prove harder to discipline myself since I will miss my daily political news and editorials on my truck radio whenever I drive to work each morning and back home. Instead I'll pop in some of my music tapes. No FM stations for music because news can filter in that way. If I'm in a store and I come across a magazine rack or newspaper dispenser I'll force to avert my eyes and avoid reading anything where news might filter back to me. Having said that I'll will also disable comments on my blog for a whole year because some people might try and sneak in some tidbit of news hoping to bait me. I will limit myself from accessing Facebook and YouTube as well because, well, again, news can filter in that way as well. I'll limit myself to certain websites that do not carry any news. Good bye Drudge Report and all that.
Now, I bet there are some Deaf people cheering at this blog news of mine thinking that I won't blog much on anything related to deafness. Be forewarned, I do have a lot to say and will contribute to my blog on a variety of topics, deaf or not. Who knows. This goal of mine may last only a day if I catch myself watching, reading, or listening to any news but I'll try and remind myself not to do that. Bad boy! Bad boy! This experiment may last only a week. A month. Or if I'm lucky a whole year. But I reserve the right to come out of "retirement" which would be a bonafide "threat" to some Deaf people. Ha ha...seriously. They're just that cranky and whine so much you could actually hear them! Ok. Rather a facetious if not hyperbolic response.
If you look to the left of my blog near the top you can see my countdown clock. On Monday it'll be 365 days til July 25, 2012 when I come out of my self-imposed news ban. The clock says "Seattle" because it was set at Pacific Coast Time and Seattle was the city I selected that I'm not very far away from. This experiment of mine is kind of like this one guy who went below into a cave for a whole year as part of a science experiment and after awhile lost all track of time and any news on the outside world. Only this time for me I want to try and lose track of any sense of news on whats happening "out there." And when I "re-emerge" back into the world of nuttiness I'll see what I missed and the things I've learned while I was "away."
Starting tomorrow I'll turn off the comments. If you have anything to say, say it now and say your peace. And I'll see you guys in about a year from now. I'll continue to write and blog, and still meet my friends in person. But I'm sure some Deaf people will get angry on what I will say but so what. They can never be happy. We already know that. But the beauty is that they can't respond in my blog and I wont read or watch their responses elsewhere. Tough guano on their part.
See ya in about a year?
6 comments:
Just in, the Martians invaded New York City and little green men are everywhere drinking Starbucks cappuccino asking for directions to Carnegie.
-Wiggums
Sorry, I've already seen Mars Attack. I know how it ends.
hah! I wish you luck. This is going to be very hard to do. News? Not ever watch the news? Are you kidding?! Impossible. Prove me wrong and I'll be amazed. What about other people sharing news with you on the job maybe? Or some old Guy in line at Home Depot starting small talk with you? Like, "Hi, isn't it awful Japan had another tsunami?" Does that count?
Good luck. You would have to cut yourself OFF from the world completely and having access to the Internet is IMPOSSIBLE to avoid any news. I give you two days.
I got to thinking...with possible doomsday approaching as a result of USA being in a financial mess.
are going underground with limited access to the Internet?
Or are you staying above ground and avoiding news?
I'm just staying away from any news. Of course, I'll have to check up on the weather since it's related to my work before I go out in the field.
Two days?
We'll see.
Okay. Bedtime for me and I'll see what happens in a year from now on no news. Comments will now be turned off. I will continue to blog and will reactivate the comment box next year unless, of course, I fail in maintaining my abstinence from any news.
I'll be around in FB but that's about it. Ciao!
Post a Comment