Now my blog is officially up to date :)

This week has been a little blah- though I’ll take that over drama and the wrong kinds of excitement.  We’ve got a packed weekend planned anyway.

I’ve had final presentations in two classes.  I learned a lot about Powerpoint and I can now awesomely embed music into a presentation to go along with a previously mundane series of mouse clicks.  Well, I played a lot with animation, transitions, backgrounds, etc. as well, and it was really kind of fun.  Some of Shawn’s geekiness must have rubbed off because after that I was so excited I sat thinking up ways to use my newfound skills and seriously considered a family Christmas Powerpoint presentation to end the year on.

Oh yes, and I now have a smartphone.  A MyTouch 4G to be exact, which Shawn spent many hours poring over eBay to find.  Shawn’s is still in the process of getting here.  He must be more picky about his phone than mine :).  So, I’m learning how to use it, and spent far too long last night downloading apps like “shopping list” and putting music on this novel device.  Shawn just hopes I actually use it.

“We” (read, Shawn and Demetri- but I have been chauffeuring) have spent much of the week planning and making a Pinewood Derby car.  The big event is next Tuesday.  I am completely surprised at the amount of work it takes to actually make one of these things.  Demetri has been up late doing a lot of sanding.  It has to be spray-painted like, 3-4 times, and in between paintings it has to dry for 24 hours!  In my opinion, they’ll be pretty lucky to get it done by Tuesday, but they’re sure working on it.

Last night’s famous quote:  Demetri walked in the bedroom on his way to bed and immediately came back out to tell me that Teddy, who had been in bed for a very long time, was still awake.  When I peeked in to look Teddy quickly shook his head and said, “No, I not still awake!” 

Ladakh

I'm taking an online college class right now called International Foundations. We just watched a video about Ladakh. I've been trying for the last several days to embed it on my blog but I just haven't figured it out. I loved the traditional Ladakh culture. The video shows how technology and modernization aren’t necessarily helping everyone. It was interesting and sad to watch. Based on the book by Helena Norberg-Hodge.

Since I can’t embed it apparently, I’ll just include the link: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-7846941319183318053&ei=-BP5Sbj2MqD-qAPb3e0f&q=Ancient+Futures:+Learning+From+Ladakh&hl=en# . I’m not sure if it works, but googling Helena Norberg-Hodge Ancient Futures will take you to the same (hour long) video.

Really though, my husband assures me that it doesn’t have to be that the more technology a country has the more its values deteriorate. I realize that I’m blessed to have the technology available to me that I do, and that I’m really more productive and know more than I would, but sometimes the simple life seems…well, so much less complicated. I love learning new things, but mourn the downsides of “progress.” Oh well, in all things there must be opposition.

Technology

Good Morning.

Okay, I just wanted to say that you don’t have to be an expert in everything, but it is nice to know a little bit about a few things! When I want to buy a smartphone it is so annoying to not have any idea which phones do what and which are worth the money you’re about to pay for them. So what do I do about it? Educate myself. This, by the way, causes me to become pickier. I don’t even want to buy the Evo anymore; I’m holding out for a dual-core processor on my phone. Why, you may ask? Easy. People who keep up with the pace of advancing technology have an advantage in the business world and at home. What would your life be like without a computer? Without the internet? Mine wouldn’t be horrible, but I know so much more and can do so much more with it than without. But there are people who don’t know how to navigate the web, or use excel, or any other number of relatively simple software. They’re still awesome people, it’s just cramping their style- even if they don’t know it. :)

It also gives my children an advantage to know how to use the most modern tech (part of the advantage at home). I do get off topic. I was going to say that a dual-core processor phone is the next step to phones becoming personal computers, and a rather big step at that. I may keep my laptop around for a while, but the day will come when you go to the library, pull out your phone and plug it into a monitor. Then you’ll do all your typing on a full-size laser-projected virtual keyboard.

Okay, done with my rant about technology. For now. But everyone should really be required to read The World Is Flat, or at least the CliffsNotes, if only to get a snapshot of the up and coming business world. The more we know the more able we are to teach our kids.