Finding a way out of life in the social network

As I was coming home from school today, I bumped into Juha, the theater manager at Niagara Arthouse Cinema. Juha was on his way to the public sauna in our neighborhood. I asked him if he swam in the lake after sauna, because I had seen pictures of Finnish people doing this. "Of course," he said. This was at 6:30 p.m., and at -1 degree Celsius. Amazing. When I gushed about the amazing walk I took yesterday, he told me that the name of the area was Lapland.

I'm nervous about social networking as a substitute or distraction from introspection and meaningful social interaction. We have the ability to be connected and stimulated during every hour of our waking life. I mean, people can make it whatever they want it to be, but the more I study, the more I isolate myself, the more I communicate online, the more I forget about living in the "all-important" moment. I remember one day a few months ago, in Eugene, biking to the scene of a potential multimedia story, and ending up standing on the street with a few ladies for about 30 minutes. No talking, no iPod, no moving. Less doing, more being. It was a breath of fresh air from the days filled with excitement, worry and hurry. Further, I remember long bus rides to the city center in Spain, long bus rides around Israel, staring out at the scenery, listening to the quiet chatter on the bus, smelling the strange odors. I was really there. My reality was the reality I saw, heard and smelled in the moment. I was a part of it, making it.

I guess there's no sense in being without doing. Part of our being is doing. The problem comes when doing overshadows the being.



Uhh... right.

So it's definitely time for me to go to bed. I have a web publishing exam in the morning (I think I've mentioned this exam twice already), and then I'll go with S and Z to the christmas market. Happy Friday!