random links part 1

Here are a couple of things I came across in my web travels that struck me as interesting.

This guy keeps all his journals. I do the same thing. Well, not exactly the same, but I love love love blank journals (stationary of all kinds really) and my "research notebook" is never too far away. It's partly a carry over from engineering school, when it was required in senior design and partly because I just feel the need. I wish that I could be as diligent about it being the same size and shape everytime I fill it up like he was, but I'm not. Not even close, but each one is loved and worn in it's own special way, and some are even referred back to now and then. When the rest of the trail goes cold, I can usually flip through the page and find what I'm looking for. It takes me about 2 years to fill one up, so the pile is growing. Maybe in another 26 years I'll have a really good story to tell.

This guy finds social networking somewhat of a burden. Sometimes I do too. Hence the facebook re-org. What I didn't tell you in that post is that I put alot of "friends" in a separate category that basically represents the people that I'm obligated to maintain an electronic social connection, but in reality, they weren't really friendships to start with and the connections would not have been maintained at all if technology didn't burden me to do so. I've also started to use the filter feature in AlertThingy, so that I don't have to waste my brain cells reading status updates from this particular group of "friends". The truth is, the feeling is probably mutal. But no one will say it out loud. People come and go from our lives for a reason.

• MAJOR SIDE NOTE: If you are reading this blog, and know me in real life, and are on facebook you most definitely did not fall into this cateogry. You fall into the category of people that I would have exchanged letters and phone calls with before the days of social networking. I miss letters, I think it has something to do with my weird love of paper and all stationary products (see above). If you are reading this blog and don't know me in real life you aren't in my facebook entourage anyways so this doesn't apply to you, but I'm very happy to have you share in my corner of the world.