Monday, July 24, 2006
Accidental Voyeur
Fred's birthday is January 30. Mom's is March 13. Sue Biggar's birthday is March 16.
I don't know who any of these people are, but I have to say that I'm becoming more curious by the moment. You see, I'm peeking into someone else's life.
I'm not doing it on purpose, though. Really! I just bought a used PDA on Ebay to replace the dead one that I've been carrying around for the past month. Before buying the new one, I decided I'd see if I REALLY needed one. Well, after a month I still don't know if NEED is the correct term, but I still WANTED one, and after all I AM more organized when I use one.
The truth is, I love the chase. I enjoyed reading up on PDAs and searching for the best deal. After several nights of staying up late reading about them and sharing important bits of information with my husband, he started to look pretty frustrated. I knew it was time to buy. (I wonder how many purchase decisions I've made because my husband reaches the point where he can't stomach hearing one more word about the items I'm considering?) I ended up getting a Palm Vx on ebay, and getting a right good deal, if I do say so myself.
The kids went to sleep at a decent hour tonight, giving me a little time to play with the new (used) toy. It's colorful and fast -- it even connects to my wireless internet connection! I wasn't able to synch to my laptop until I returned to work the following Monday, so I was setting it up manually when I noticed someone else's memos. There are always some risks in buying a used item (this one did not come with a manual), but I've been pretty fortunate in my Ebay purchases so far. Not knowing how to delete more than one memo at a time, I found myself looking at each title as it passed -- tips on healthy eating, notes to a contractor, directions. I know that this person keeps up with birthdays and Valentine's Day, works out regularly, and does charity work. Calendar items were even more cumbersome to delete, because some had been programmed to repeat, which requires one extra step to clear them.
Let's delete several together, shall we? OK: March has four remaining items: I'll keep St. Patrick's Day (the 17th) -- it's always good to be reminded. But I'm deleting Helen Cooper's birthday on the 18th, although I wish her the best, wherever she may be. I'll do the same with Patricia O'Connor's (the 20th) and Michael Coso's (the 22nd). Victoria Angier's birthday is May 2 (the word God Father is noted here -- The Sopranos comes to mind). And on May 5, the owner of this device planned (plans?) to send off the NY State AIA Competition Packages. I'm curious about AIA, so I google it and find that it has something to do with building interesting figures out of sand... On May 29, the entry exclaims, DAY OFF -OFFICE CLOSED - MEMORIAL DAY.
I'm curious what the previous owner of this PDA will do to celebrate Memorial Day. Will he or she meet up with Michael Coso and Patricia O'Connor at, say, a place in the Hamptons? Or are they more Jersey Shore types?
I realize that this could easily become an obsession. I know that he/she pays his/her Expo account by the fist to avoid "interst", and that he participated in a "Poonam Sharma Interview." On June 2 at 11:30, he had something to do with "Starr Review of Bid Documents" -- Could that be KEN STARR????
As I delete each of these items (I know there must be an easier way to do this, but would it really be this interesting?) I think about how much of MY (less busy, less interesting) life will take their place. If a stranger looked at my PDA, he or she would certainly notice the Saturday riding lesson that overlaps with the toddler ballet class -- how does she swing that? they'd wonder (sometimes I wonder that myself). They'd find a file marked grocery list that might prompt them to suggest that I could really save some money if I just didn't worry about ORGANIC. But I don't think they could've helped me to remember my nephew Will's birthday, which I plain forgot to enter into the calendar -- darn!
I don't know who any of these people are, but I have to say that I'm becoming more curious by the moment. You see, I'm peeking into someone else's life.
I'm not doing it on purpose, though. Really! I just bought a used PDA on Ebay to replace the dead one that I've been carrying around for the past month. Before buying the new one, I decided I'd see if I REALLY needed one. Well, after a month I still don't know if NEED is the correct term, but I still WANTED one, and after all I AM more organized when I use one.
The truth is, I love the chase. I enjoyed reading up on PDAs and searching for the best deal. After several nights of staying up late reading about them and sharing important bits of information with my husband, he started to look pretty frustrated. I knew it was time to buy. (I wonder how many purchase decisions I've made because my husband reaches the point where he can't stomach hearing one more word about the items I'm considering?) I ended up getting a Palm Vx on ebay, and getting a right good deal, if I do say so myself.
The kids went to sleep at a decent hour tonight, giving me a little time to play with the new (used) toy. It's colorful and fast -- it even connects to my wireless internet connection! I wasn't able to synch to my laptop until I returned to work the following Monday, so I was setting it up manually when I noticed someone else's memos. There are always some risks in buying a used item (this one did not come with a manual), but I've been pretty fortunate in my Ebay purchases so far. Not knowing how to delete more than one memo at a time, I found myself looking at each title as it passed -- tips on healthy eating, notes to a contractor, directions. I know that this person keeps up with birthdays and Valentine's Day, works out regularly, and does charity work. Calendar items were even more cumbersome to delete, because some had been programmed to repeat, which requires one extra step to clear them.
Let's delete several together, shall we? OK: March has four remaining items: I'll keep St. Patrick's Day (the 17th) -- it's always good to be reminded. But I'm deleting Helen Cooper's birthday on the 18th, although I wish her the best, wherever she may be. I'll do the same with Patricia O'Connor's (the 20th) and Michael Coso's (the 22nd). Victoria Angier's birthday is May 2 (the word God Father is noted here -- The Sopranos comes to mind). And on May 5, the owner of this device planned (plans?) to send off the NY State AIA Competition Packages. I'm curious about AIA, so I google it and find that it has something to do with building interesting figures out of sand... On May 29, the entry exclaims, DAY OFF -OFFICE CLOSED - MEMORIAL DAY.
I'm curious what the previous owner of this PDA will do to celebrate Memorial Day. Will he or she meet up with Michael Coso and Patricia O'Connor at, say, a place in the Hamptons? Or are they more Jersey Shore types?
I realize that this could easily become an obsession. I know that he/she pays his/her Expo account by the fist to avoid "interst", and that he participated in a "Poonam Sharma Interview." On June 2 at 11:30, he had something to do with "Starr Review of Bid Documents" -- Could that be KEN STARR????
As I delete each of these items (I know there must be an easier way to do this, but would it really be this interesting?) I think about how much of MY (less busy, less interesting) life will take their place. If a stranger looked at my PDA, he or she would certainly notice the Saturday riding lesson that overlaps with the toddler ballet class -- how does she swing that? they'd wonder (sometimes I wonder that myself). They'd find a file marked grocery list that might prompt them to suggest that I could really save some money if I just didn't worry about ORGANIC. But I don't think they could've helped me to remember my nephew Will's birthday, which I plain forgot to enter into the calendar -- darn!
