Carly's Ramblings Blog - Style

What Invention Do I Want?

30 Day Blogging Challenge

PROMPT July 29th
Write about an invention or technology that you wish existed that would make your life better.

Okay. How many of us are going to say a vaccine to rid us of Covid-19? Allowing us to return to normal, with the knowledge of what we have learned over our confinement. Knowledge that people and connections are important. Knowledge that we can find creative ways to interact without always using technology. And a new appreciation for going out into the world.

One of my concerns with the confinement and the way our way our world was going beforehand was that people were 'Leaning In' - that means they were working too much and not spending enough time with friends and family. Having done remote teaching and talking to people who have been working from home, I've found people are giving too much time to the work because there in nothing to denote when you are at work and when you are at home. Those in that situation need to learn to step away.

I have a friend whose husband works at Google. It is an international company, which means he works all day on his own projects and then often returns to work after dinner to have meetings with people in Germany or California. So instead of working 9 to 5, he is working that plus an additional 2 or 3 hours after his workday should be done. They don't have children, but I can see why relationships could suffer from this kind of thing. The concept of Leaning In does not feed the individual, it feeds the company.... and when it comes right down to it, you need to think does that company really care about you or your family or are you just a tool it uses to make its profits. I know Company's like Toyota cut their Christmas party budget so that they don't have to support anything more than what they have to. Having read Tena Henley's Leaning Out, she makes an argument for taking back your time and your life so that you fulfill yourself and don't give it all away. Why work yourself into the ground for some big company that doesn't give a damn?

I believe this pandemic was a chance to rethink our values and consider what is important... people are always more important than the Machine.

Still, we need to find a new normal. One that gets the work done and still supports us as humans, not as just another worker in the grind of life.

Hug your kids, reach out virtually, keep a safe distance and one day we can appreciate the energy and dynamic wonderfulness that is human interaction again.