Fighting the digital world
The
digital world is taking over. My mobile is flooded with dates and reminders. As
soon as I have made an appointment a message comes through. Then a day or two
before the date another reminder arrives. Even after the event a ‘how did we
do?’ probing text arrives. This seems fair enough for health appointments but
now my hairdresser is in on the act sending confirmation and then a reminder. When
I order online, I often get prompts that goods are arriving the next day then a
reminder on the day itself and if you are not sure you can track its progress.
My
friend counts her steps every day with the help of an app on her mobile. She
has a daily target. If she does well the target moves to a higher number. She
is always trying to do more. At night if she is short of her target then she
paces the house, up and down stairs and from room to room, she goes to bed when
she has done what her mobile tells her is enough. I know that exercise is good,
but I have deleted my step counting app because I was going the same way as my friend.
Now I set my own targets but there is always that nagging feeling that I am not
doing well enough.
On a
calmer note, have you noticed the birdsong at dusk? They are making their
presence felt now that spring is approaching and nature is awakening. When we
go out at night, we notice a little wren. Not because of its song, but because
it seems to have taken up residence in our hanging basket. I think that it is
roosting there when the sun sets. One year a wren nested there amongst our
display and our plants were ruined and of course we did not mind.
But the
owners of the garden centre I went to recently did mind the intrusion of a certain
bird. They were used to birds in their large greenhouse especially a pair of
nesting robins and a singing blackbird.
“Where
are your garden birds?” I asked in dismay. I had always enjoyed them flitting
in and out of the bags of fertilizer and pot plants.
“All
gone. A sparrowhawk got in the other day and the little birds fled for their
lives.”
I was
as about as welcome as this sparrowhawk when I turned up at my sisters’ get
together without the cakes I had agreed to bring. It had completely slipped my
mind and I had promised. I should have sent myself a text reminder.
(Taken from my column in the Shropshire Star)
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