My Annotated List of 7 to 10 Things
After hating technology’s existence for the majority of last week and this, I have to donate some blog space to technologies I have to admit I wouldn’t want to live without.
As a shout-out to a brilliant English teacher friend, here’s an annotated list of 7 to 10 of those items, in no particular order, mind you:
1. Pandora. There’s nothing better than coming to work, opening up my browser, going to Pandora.com, and typing in the name of the artist who made me happy on the ride to school. Today it was Taylor Swift. Pandora’s definition and interpretation of Taylor Swift has made me happy all day. Here’s to more!
2. My iPod touch. At home, my iPod touch serves as the remote control for my music which plays wirelessly through my MacBook (#3, see below). It also controls DVDs, Netflix (#6) streaming movies, and Hulu.com TV shows I play nice and big through my wonderful 42-inch LCD TV (#4). The iPod also allows me to carry photos of my family and friends and my music and podcasts and games and, well, with 75,000 possible apps, I could definitely go on.
P. S. Come June, my cell phone (NOT a favorite technology) and my iPod touch will become one. I visit the iPhone Website once a week. No joke.
3. My Aluminum MacBook. I’ve loved Mac computers since I was a little girl. I didn’t know PCs existed until they started popping up in my school life. Yes, Mac computers are pretty. But they’re also easy to use and intuitive. I couldn’t get dressed each morning without my weather dashboard widget. Perhaps it’s what I’m used to, but golly, I know I’m not the only one.
4. My 42-inch LCD TV. I’m not sure how to annotate this without stating the obvious. Perhaps this will work: I can see the puck. Never before have I been able to see the puck on TV.
5. Online Shopping.
There’s nothing like a Web-based cataloging system to make a librarian’s job so much easier. I still can’t believe how fast I can catalog a book and get labels printed. It’s like heaven. I am a catch-22: sometimes, I yearn for a world without technology but I cringe at the sight of card-catalog systems of yore. Oh, well.
In the same vein: Ingram’s iPage Online Ordering System. I adore selection lists. I adore having instant access to book reviews. I adore placing orders with a click of a button.
Who am I kidding? I adore all online shopping.
6. Netflix. Not only do their DVDs come and go from my house as I please, but if I’m in the mood to watch something else instantly, that’s okay, too. I’m sure that Netflix will be a relic sometime in the not-too-distant future, but for now, I think it’s such a wonderful comfort when you want a movie fix.
7. DVR. I’m addicted to my DVR. If I ever have to make the choice between TV without DVR and no TV, I would select the latter. I can’t handle TV that I can’t pause and record. I watch a specific handful of shows and like to watch them at my leisure. TV without DVR would be tortuous.
8. Networking Applications and Programs: Twitter, FaceBook, Email, Blogs.
Among all of the junk that swims around the Internet, there are some wonderful connections to be made amongst colleagues from around the country and the world using ingenious applications. Twitter has allowed me to develop those connections.
FaceBook has brought me back in touch with friends I’ve lost touch with over the year; that’s a blessing.
Email allows me to communicate daily with friends and family without picking up the phone. I hate the phone.
Blogs allow me to write and to learn from other librarians and teachers about young adult literature, librarianship, teaching, learning, and being citizens of a world greater than ourselves.
9. There isn’t a nine. I guess I’m an “8 Favorite Technologies” kinda girl. And perhaps a few #s are cheating a bit since it’s questionable whether individual Websites can be individual technologies. But you get the jist. I admittedly like some technologies a great deal.
Could I live without them? Sure. But if I move to the cottage in the woods with my cart of books I would undoubtedly miss my iPod, my computer, and my gigantic TV. That’s a fact.
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[...] MY ANNOTATED LIST OF 7 TO 10 THINGS by Norah Connolly: Well, aside from a title that would have never passed in my class, it’s very exciting that Ms. Connolly, our librarian, decided to play along too. Shouldn’t all teachers have to do these exercises as well? Post a Comment (0) Comments Read More Create a free edublog to get your own comment avatar (and more!) [...]