Category Archives: This and That

Granted, I Now Google It

“When it comes to life the critical thing is whether you take things for granted or take them with gratitude.” ~ G. K. Chesterton

On occasion, a group of my friends reminisce and tell epic tales of term papers–stories about fare maidens, slaying dragons, and escaping the wrath of evil sorcerers. Okay, we didn’t have to walk to school barefoot in ten feet of snow, but we had to physically go to the library, look up the location of abstracts and books in the card catalog, travel the labyrinth of the Dewey decimal code, and even bring a roll of dimes for copies or from the microfiche machine in the pre-Google days. There was no cut-and-paste; there was onion skin paper after paper yanked out of our typewriters, crumpled beyond recognition, and strewn about our bedrooms, a minefield of typos.

Twenty years later, in order to solve any argument, I simply pull out my smartphone and google the answer. In a few seconds we know who sang that song, what caused WWI, or when the movie is playing. I come to work and I just expect my computer to turn on, load programs, work as fast as I am able to type with two browsers, three programs open, and if there is any delay, I’m frustrated to no end.

Anything we “get used to” is an easy candidate for apathy. Maybe the first day I got my 20″ iMac that is hell-a-fast I was excited; maybe that lasted for two months. Two years later, I just expect it to work. I take it for granted. And, perhaps, some of the stories of the days of old are good reminders of how fortunate we are that in just a few minutes, I can type up this blog post, publish it to the cloud, tweet it, share it on Facebook, accept comments, all without any onion-skinned paper enduring my wrath.

This week’s topic — What do you take for granted?

How do you relax and recharge?

7 Replies

Rest and relaxation are a gift from the industrial revolution forward. Machines doing our work have helped us achieve more and work fewer hours. I’m not sure the technology/mobile device revolution has helped us work less, but we surely do produce more.

I mean, who remembers using the card catalog at the library to research a paper in college and bringing a roll of dimes with you in case you had to print from microfiche? Google has all but eliminated that laborious chore.

Vacations are not my goal nor are they the source of relaxation because I find that I have to work extra hard to prepare for my absence only to find mounds of paperwork when I return. My vacation is plagued by the background worry that I had forgotten to do this or that. Continue reading →

Community Project: National Children’s Forest Visitor’s Center

Boom Boom: Out Go the Lights

1 Reply

You have a dream for the perfect break room that will serve both as a place to relax daily and a facility from which to cater your own Holiday party. You’ve hired a general contractor, done all of the improvements, and have sent out the invitations to your in-sourced party.

People are talking, gathering, hanging out in your new kitchen/break room, as they always do. The ovens you had installed are working well, but your mushroom puffs need a quick heat-up. All is well at your lively party until you use two microwaves simultaneously to heat up your hors d’ oeuvres. Better light some candles, because you’ve just blown a circuit.

If your break room only included one microwave, it was designed that way for a reason. Microwaves use between 1,200 and 1,700 watts which requires a separate 20 Amp circuit for each microwave installed.

It’s important for you communicate your usage intentions with your design-build contractor. He will be able to keep your party in the light and, you, out of the dark.

Microwaves