D-R-E-A: Driven. Resourceful. Energetic. Artistic

Let’s face it: we all like attention (well, some of us do.) And what’s not to like about it for those that like it? For a brief moment, it seems as though the world is screeching to a halt because whatever you’re doing or saying is so fascinating that it must be observed. We feel a glowing sense of inner pride as onlookers gaze and praise at our attention-worthy work. However, due to recent technological breakthroughs, attention has become a double-edged sword.

In a fast-paced society where we want today’s news yesterday, it’s rather difficult to obtain the attention of an audience,  particularly when the transmission of information travels faster than the blink of an eye! So, I guess, in order to compensate for our quasi-compulsive need for attention, we resort to posting content up on the Internet, for all eyes to see if only for a second. One of which has become ubiquitous in the online world and it is simply known as a blog.

Granted, compared to all of the other daring, explicit, and downright vulgar material available on the Internet, blogs are relatively tame. But, has this made everyone so insecure that they have to have a blog in order to have some semblance of self-importance??? I mean, think about it: how many people will honestly read about your humdrum day at work or your fun day at the beach in its entirety?? Sure, I can understand if those days were really important and you might want to write them down so that they could have some kind of place in your memory (or in this case the world wide web)

But really, do we want attention that bad that we will spend, I don’t know, like 10 minutes or so typing and editing a blog? I can understand if it was for monetary or entertainment purposes because people’s jobs are on the line, but when you’re at home and you could be doing other things instead of blogging, you’re typing away your life’s story for all to see!!?? (and hence, I’m writing one. Ohhh the sweet paradox!!!)

But I digress, what has happened to all of us? Has the advent of the Internet created such an ease in access to share and obtain information that we find ourselves helpless to indulge in this guilty pleasure? Has it also completely eradicated everything that we did when our hands weren’t permanently attached to keyboards and our eyes glued to screens? Or is it just a scapegoat as we place blame on it instead of us as we silently broadcast our insecurities and perceived attention-getting material to millions of people across the world?

Then again, do the answers to those questions really even matter???

Be it a cure for our boredom, a quick, easy way to make money, or an outlet to channel your insecurities, the Internet has become almost a permanent staple in our lives, a tool that we so heavily rely on especially since it satisfies our incessant need for attention! Who are we to question and challenge what it has done to how we evaluate attention worthy material when it has so revolutionized how we give and receive attention?

So in closing fellow bloggers, embrace the attention and type your little hearts out until you get carpal tunnel syndrome, you need major invasive surgery, you lose all feeling and movement of your fingers, and you must resort to one of those Stephen Hawking-like laptops that hook up to your brain and type and talk as you blink your eyelids!!!! Express yourself and don’t let your friends, family, employers, society, and other angry bloggers get in your way!!!!!