google'd out of a first impression
Increasingly, as I grow older, I have become more conscious of the perils of a bad first impression. So, I’ll product my hair, I’ll dryclean my shirts, and hell, I’ll even have a fortune cookie conversation or two in order to make a good first impression. These are the affectations required in life. After all, we must all get married – and that itself is a chaotic process – if Sally doesn’t like you, then she can’t then introduce you to her friend’s friend’s cousin who is perfect for you. It’s like the Stata Center reasoning for life processes (you have to bump into people for great science to proceed.)
So, if I have suddenly become conscious of first impressions, why am I so slovenly with the google hits? These days, a big part of the first impression comes a la google. Now, to be frank, I am extremely googleable. I can be stalked, phone numbers can be unearthed, and pictures and blind date articles can be found. This is a good thing if one’s impression of you is inconsequential. But, the more I think about it – now, everytime I send an email to someone random, I am attaching access to my entire life.
Bottom line: to all of you who were meticulously careful about what was on the web about you, my congratulations. It’s better to be a mystery than a loudmouth, a loser, an asshole, an inarticulate abuser of SAT words, a man who enjoys beginning sentences with „Life is...“, an immodestly insecure whiner, and so on and so forth. Well, enough of that, google cannot be undone, and I live in total exhibitionism.
As an aside, I thought the Mary Cheney shoutout was careless. But the whiplash Mr. Kerry got for doing so was also careless. What he should have done, and indeed what Mr. Bush would have done, would be to have a third party organization do the namecalling for him. Silly democrats, always trying to be sleazy, but still losing to the republicans.
And finally, Jon Stewart made me smile yesterday. I’m a fan of the Carvelle/Novak version of Crossfire, though.
So, if I have suddenly become conscious of first impressions, why am I so slovenly with the google hits? These days, a big part of the first impression comes a la google. Now, to be frank, I am extremely googleable. I can be stalked, phone numbers can be unearthed, and pictures and blind date articles can be found. This is a good thing if one’s impression of you is inconsequential. But, the more I think about it – now, everytime I send an email to someone random, I am attaching access to my entire life.
Bottom line: to all of you who were meticulously careful about what was on the web about you, my congratulations. It’s better to be a mystery than a loudmouth, a loser, an asshole, an inarticulate abuser of SAT words, a man who enjoys beginning sentences with „Life is...“, an immodestly insecure whiner, and so on and so forth. Well, enough of that, google cannot be undone, and I live in total exhibitionism.
As an aside, I thought the Mary Cheney shoutout was careless. But the whiplash Mr. Kerry got for doing so was also careless. What he should have done, and indeed what Mr. Bush would have done, would be to have a third party organization do the namecalling for him. Silly democrats, always trying to be sleazy, but still losing to the republicans.
And finally, Jon Stewart made me smile yesterday. I’m a fan of the Carvelle/Novak version of Crossfire, though.
posted by devdoot majumdar at 2:25 PM
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