An accident occurred. All of my sent messages vanished from their email folder in an instant when my finger accidentally pressed the wrong button. I went into a panic. I checked the trash. Every one of them was present. I returned them to the Sent folder by copying and pasting them. However, they vanished the following day.
I searched my entire desktop for them. I made calls to Apple Support, Spectrum, and Apple once more. No one was able to get them back. About 20 days prior, I had backed up my desktop on Time Machine, but now all of those messages were encrypted, and I would have to go through each one individually to see what I had. Furthermore, they could still not be returned to the Sent folder.
The lamp’s genie emerged. The bird had taken to the skies.
Even though I reassured myself that a large portion of the data was still stored in other designated files, I was still extremely disturbed that a careless error had erased them all.
Then I recalled one of the principles of Alcoholics Anonymous: We all make mistakes because we are all human. And the well-known quote from Alexander Pope: “To err is human.” To pardon, divine.
Grace is a supernatural gift in which we consent to partake. We can forgive ourselves since we are fallible and human thanks to grace. for committing errors.
However, the experience also made me fear technology, however momentarily. This could not reasonably continue for more than 48 hours, as you may understand. Technology is used in almost every aspect of my life, including writing this column, listening to and playing music, creating soundscapes, and operating my vehicle. I also had a close relationship with it, unlike many others in my age group, which made me stop and think even more.
It’s one thing to rely on technology for things like voice mail, messaging, GPS, your phone, and your car. We get closer to problems when we depend on technology for everything.
Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee compose this speech for Colonel Drummond in the drama Inherit the Wind:
It has never been cheap to make progress. You must pay for it. Although a telephone is useful, privacy and the allure of distance are lost. You can cast your ballot, Madam, but you forfeit your right to hide behind your skirt or powder puff.You can conquer the air, but the clouds will smell like gasoline and the birds will no longer be amazed.
Additionally, they have transformed a thousand luxuries into necessity, as said by Mark Twain.
Before our phones became our guardians and, in a way, keepers, we had no idea how much we would depend on them to take and make calls, keep track of appointments, snap pictures of our grandchildren, text a relative in Florida, check the weather, or find out about the newest scandal.
Additionally, I felt that technology was becoming a little shaky at the end of the election campaign, as if someone was meddling with the wires.
I’m not exactly anti-tech. I oppose the misuse of technology. Every day, I witness instances of people not looking up when crossing the street, people spreading false information and using derogatory language online, and newscasters spinning stories that are more entertainment than news. In his grave, Walter Cronkite must be whirling.
Joan discovered a book about disconnecting from digital devices while out for a stroll on a beautiful October afternoon. I came across these recommendations online from another writer, Seff Bray, who cited a number of well-known authors, including Anne Lamott, who is one of my faves.
If you unplug it for a few minutes, almost everything will function normally again, including you. – Anne Lamott
Your life should be enhanced by technology, not taken over by it. Billy Cox
Knowing what is important makes it clear what is not. Cal Newport
Many of us appear frantic to disengage the more methods we have to connect. Iyer Pico
It’s not just me, then. It appears that a lot of people have had sensory or information overload and are considering cleansing. Technology cannot provide us with everything, and in many respects, it takes far more from us than it gives. Since it’s here to stay, it should be our top priority to figure out how to balance our digital lives with taking a stroll in the sunshine with a loved one on a lovely October afternoon.
Despite the fact that I may have lost some emails, I developed a fresh understanding of their significance to me. You are aware of how I feel about digitizing artifacts to protect them from the effects of time. However, hard drives are also temporary, as Joan frequently reminds me. After I’m gone, I want to give some of mine to my granddaughter, but who can predict what technology will be available in ten or fifteen years? Humans won’t even be required to maintain the race if Elon Musk gets his way.
In high school, did you ever read Rossum’s Universal Robots?
Yes, I did. Let me tell you, the humans don’t have a good ending!
Raise your lovely grey heads!
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