How would that look on a protest sign eh! But in all seriousness, I went to verify that making homemade pasta only took knowing the ratio of 100gms of flour to 1 egg and the ability to knead it into the texture of a bambinos butt, I did verify this but had no pasta to show for the effort as I ended up spending too much time gorging on information about the 20 year old Ramsey case that is back in the news. One article led to another and then another and… And every single time I fall for the garbage articles online my head hurts and I feel like I have been robbed…time and brain cells mercilessly yanked from me due to my own stupidity and lack of self-restraint.
Today I wanted to exert my power of choice and buried my cell-phone in another place that contains trash (my purse) and between errands ended up walking 6km with the boys, played in a park for a couple of hours, went to the library and basically told yahoo news to “stick it”.
Here is the thing, I read studies on this. I know the media cheaps out by resurrecting old news, I know that every click on things that cause mental-decay alerts the news outlet through article stats so they generate more and more of such content which in turn creates monster, nonsense, talentless celebrities who keeps oiling this cycle…wasting my time and getting rich off of me. I the reader am guilty, I indicate that I want it by succumbing to headlines that I know contain articles that will add absolutely nothing to my life. And the recycling of news or what is chosen to be even considered news…AAAAAAHHHHH. Checking sources has never been more important than now considering how something tweeted on twitter today is considered a fact tomorrow and the fact that a whole news article, a whole news storm can be made because Gigi Hadid tweets she prefers to use children toothbrushes for her delicate teeth (I just made that up by the way). Often (not always…yes I am looking at you NHK (Cough, cough))public funded media presents more quality content and diverse view points. Choose carefully, support the real journalists out on the field and say no to those headlines that lure you in (and you know that they are doing it, you see the bad candy these strangers are handing out so don’t take it).
Yes, sometimes not thinking is what you need, it helps you unwind yadda, yadda but people somehow relaxed before the internet. People relaxed before T.V. Go back to the stone age and people could still find a way to relax after finding food and having a stressful day of dodging predators. I am not there yet…I know too much about Kardashians even though I have seen zero episodes of their television show, I have never even heard their voices yet I can name them all. I know Black Chyna is pregnant with Robs baby and his family ain’t happy but I have no idea who the heck Black Chyna is. And this brings me to why does their lives matter in mine. There is a number of allotted days in my life and I am just handing it out like I can hop into a convenience store and add more to extend it. Swinging high up in the air on the swings and climbing on the playground, not looking at a screen but at the gorgeous smiles around me, now that is what I am willing to pay for with my vitality and breath!