Martha Mihaly

So Heath is dead.  What I say here is not meant to be disrespectful in any way.  I am sure that his death is a horrific loss for his friends and family. 

Not for me though.

It’s too bad, I liked him in Brokeback Mountain, but at the end of the day I don’t think that his achievements warrant the coverage he got in death.  Who does the coverage benefit?  I am sure not his family, not his friends.  It beneifts the media companies that pimped him out to begin with.

What is it that draws us to these stories? 

• slow news day
• scandal
• money
• broken moral compass

I think that most of us revel in the stories on TMZ and PerezHilton because it’s fun to watch how people who have “everything” waste it.  Let’s face it, Britney and Amy Winehouse are train wrecks.  They make my problems seem almost funny.  I am honest with myself, I know how mean this perspective is. 

We know that most of the people in the tabloids WANT the coverage.  They profit financially from it.  THere are many very rich and successful actors and musicians who fly under the radar their whole lives.  What do we know about Bono’s life?  Nothing.  That’s the way he wants it.

I think the real question then becomes, do these people in the tabloids know we are laughing at them, not with them? Do they care?

Well, I’ve finished writing another grant application and my hopes are high.  I’ve applied for $15,000 to the !ndigo love of reading grant to buy basic literacy support texts for the school one of my children attends.  My hopes are high, as we fit the criteria of the application to a “T”.

So that’s off my desk, and now the Second Annual Hootenany for Hope Planning begins.  Heather is doing well.  We are travelling this road with her.  Some of her friends are beside her in the journey, others like me, are wandering the path showing up regularly to visit.  I admire her strength and valour, and that she is still making everyone laugh.  ALS is such a cruel disease.

I wonder what it is that gives some people such strength in the face of adversity,  Many would curl up and cry.  Is it faith in a God, or the support of friends and family, or something else?  I know she must have her dark times but I haven’t seen one yet.

I’ll keep you posted on that journey from time to time.  Now it’s off to the farmer’s market for me!

I realized last week when I was away  for a week and finally checked my email, that I was swamped with notifications from all of the social networking sites that I belong to.  I know that I probably belong to more than the average person, as part of the market research I did for a job included  ‘experienceing’ other sites.  Holy cow though, can you say SPAM?

I’ve gone in and turned off most of the auto messages.  Frankly, when I first signed up to the really popular ones like fb and myspace they were new and very shiny.  Now they are becoming a pain in the butt.

Sometimes more (applications, notifications etc) is just more.  It’s not better.

Thanks to David Armano and his article for making people think about this.

Happy New Year’s to everyone.   I had a wonderful Christmas and New Year’s filled with friends and family, food and drink, and lots of skiing.I haven’t posted much this last week as we were in Vermont skiing.  We had a fabulous time, notwitstanding that we left a day early to beat an enourmous blizzard.  We had an extra day that we spent in Montreal, and New Year’s Day found us at the Insectarium and Biodome.  Two incredible attractions, that we all enjoyed.  I’d recommend them highly to anyone who likes natural history.  We met up with our dear friends Mike and Lisa and their three kids in Vermont.  I went to University with Mike, so our friendship runs long and deep.

Unfortunately (or not) I forgot my ‘electronics’ bag that had my laptop and camera in it.  So the downside was no posting or reading anyone else, no photos of a magnificent family holiday.  I also could have used some time to work on the latest grant application that I am writing.

The upside was no distractions from my life. 

This in combination with some buzz in the web 2.0 world about why women aren’t on the development end really got me to thinking about how much I use my laptop, and what for.  It’s a tool to accomplish the usual jobs like banking and emails, but also to keep current and to distract myself from some of the day to day life I live.  I watched a few people using their machines at the hotel (only the lounge had internet).  It seemed the same 2 people who couldn’t relax.  I must say that it brought up the same old discussion that I have with friends and family….is technology a gift or curse?  For our part, H left his crackberry at home and my phone was off.  Our friends who we went with aren’t as wired as we are, for them it’s not an issue.

I am beginning to think there are really three kinds of people.  Those who are completely immersed in the web and all its trappings, those who use it a tool, and those who don’t use it at all.  Three groups with entirely disparate perspectives on technology I suppose. 

I decided that a week away from the internet was a good thing for me - until I got home to 118 emails, and all the work. Oh well!  It was worth it.  I’ll post some photos when our friends send us them.