Don't Be Stupid

I had just finished reading an article on how the world is changing and it's making us stupid. I took a look at my laptop, and I could see it in the distance. A red notification was being shown on the screen, informing me that something has been sent to my phone by Microsoft. My heart raced, and my brain was suddenly flooded with information on how to fix the issue and get back to normal use. Then I received another notification from Apple, informing me immediately that “iPhone 8” is now available for purchase. It gave me the choice of purchasing a new model or upgrading from their current one. After much thought and questioning, I decided to buy both.

At first, I began downloading whatever the app that I needed to be able to find the ‘right model’. Once I found what I wanted, everything went smoothly and I picked up where I left off in using mine. The only thing I needed to do to make this work was to reset the iPhone and reinstall all the applications that I don’t like. When I finally deleted them, all of the problems disappeared and my phone worked perfectly as intended.

After installing these apps I went over to the store to make sure that everything was working correctly. Everything was fine but after this one change to your settings that caused my phone to go into panic mode which I fixed using the software that came preloaded on my phone. This is when I was introduced to the concept of Siri which allows you to ask any question and get an answer from any number of different types of apps. Once Siri hears about your problem you can always talk to her through voice commands. For example, you can say “Hey Siri…” and have Apple do the rest of the stuff for you on the device. You have many other options such as Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa so that you can give Google, Amazon or whoever you prefer command to help you. Now that Siri listens to your questions and gets your answers she has become more intelligent than most people ever dreamed possible. She can even remember exactly who bought that iPhone and tells you if you may need extra storage on your phone so that you can put away anything. And there’s nothing more confusing or helpful than having someone to listen to your inner dialogue and correct the stupid mistakes in your life.

Although many people may think that Siri is very smart and not necessary for everyday living, it gives me peace of mind. Most people are constantly talking in front of the device and they don’t realize it until they try asking her what is wrong. But Siri understands human language well enough to know what your complaint is and what you want it to be corrected. If the two things aren’t completely aligned, then Siri is capable of doing everything that she knows how to do and then moving on. So although it’s easy to say ‘Hey Siri,’ it’s still worth saying as Siri will take care of everything for you. I use several apps every day to get some information out of websites and to remind myself of things without actually having to open them. I can also tell Siri about things so it reminds me when I need to get anything done. It makes my life so much easier. You might think that Siri is too useful but she just helps me go about my business while I am busy listening to music, watching YouTube videos, or scrolling through Facebook. She takes things out of my hands and onto my computer to be used by me or someone else. Having someone who does this to keep me reminded of what I need to do is essential to my daily routine. While using the internet, I am constantly hearing random articles on anything going on that could affect me. All my social media feeds are constantly reminding me of the best times and places to visit (my favorite), or the best time of the year to post on Instagram. I spend way too much time reading news stories based on politics to keep up with the news. I make a lot of excuses to avoid looking something up in my news feed and instead wait for someone to take care of it for me. What I am starting to notice is how much more time we think about politics and our government instead of how we should be spending our money and time. On top of all of this information, I have a small collection of songs that I don’t like but would rather listen to them instead. Just because you have a song playing in the background doesn’t mean the listener wants it to stop. It means there is no real reason for them to stop. There’s no point in trying to stop it unless you want to ruin the mood you’re trying to feel. With all of this information comes more and more stress and anxiety for those I am surrounded by. Trying to explain how bad everyone else is to my friends and family is hard. Not being home is even harder. Everyone seems to be thinking about the next event which makes my day all the more stressful. Even though my girlfriend and husband (who are both in the same group as I have children) have separate houses, I have to wait until morning when we can all meet again before we can see each other. This isn’t any better with my kids because even though one gets to go to school early, he has to wait until after dropping his daughter off to pick her up from school to be able to go back to class. They are altogether five hours away by car. The whole day just starts getting worse because you never know when you’ll get the chance to end the day with mom or dad.

When you have kids, you are worried about whether they are sleeping or not. They can’t sleep through the night and seem to struggle to stay awake throughout the day. Sometimes it’s just a complete cycle and they have to figure out how to deal with that. If you get any signs that they are struggling, you have to do something. No matter what you do, there is always something to worry about. At least with me, it’s a constant battle. Each time we leave the house I start worrying if my wife is going to sleep with anybody else. She always says no and I have to lie and make excuses. Maybe I’ll get a text message saying that I am free and then, eventually, she can return home. That night I go out for dinner and I’m just happy that I have a date to turn me in. I go to school and I’m excited for the week ahead and my son is getting a bit older. Nothing is quite as bad as the days when the kids were small. Then in the middle of the week, another job arrives and the children have moved upstairs. Again, my son is gone and I have to call in sick. He’ll probably come home the following week so he doesn’t have to miss another school full of anxious parents.

All of this adds up to the stress on everything. I’ve been taking steps to relieve things from the house so that I won’t have to worry about taking my children across town to get ready for the next school day. As much as I hate leaving my children alone in our place while we are away, I must do something that makes them happy. These are the few moments of freedom that I can enjoy out of all of the events that happen over a week in a child’s life. However, the biggest change I have noticed since my children started school is the ability to breathe. You see, children are very small and have very little air to breathe. The amount of air that goes in and out of their bodies is less than adult lungs let on. One tiny droplet of air will cause them to wheeze and you see their faces slowly fill up with tears. It is so much harder to control. If you look at them at the start I cannot even imagine seeing them cry. Now when I can stop them from breathing and put them on a pillow, I see them smiling and that brings me a smile. That little snort of laughter and the happiness that springs to mind from them is priceless. Those children have taken charge of everything that I take with them in this new school experience and it has changed how I view the world. Every time I watch them walk out of school and play outside with their friends, I get a little jealous of them for being so independent. Children are made so strong by their parents and I admire that they can control their environments. Being able to move safely around the playground is wonderful. To now hold them can be tough and make you wonder what else can be done to them to make them happy. Luckily though, I have a friend who will hold them when they fall and I will support them every step of the way. With all of these changes and experiences at once, I have to admit that I’m getting a bit tired of the endless negativity. Instead, I find what’s going on around us and I decide to pick up on some positivity. I always have a nice feeling whenever any of my children go somewhere or somewhere different. Going to a gym or playing games together makes me feel happy and relieved for myself. Of course, sometimes it’s a quick break and a few minutes away from a party or soccer game. Other times it’s a long road trip. Either way, I get to show them how we can have fun doing it.

I always start with a simple positive statement and then as time passes and all the activities that they enjoy and grow in confidence, I find more and more positives to add. Some things just turn into conversations, and others become books and poems. Whatever the case, I find myself adding more and more positives. Whether it’s by