6.29.2013

Update (Forever) in Progress

He sat there,
spinning around in a swivel chair,
frustrated by it all.
His laptop was on the smooth oak counter in front of him.
The system update was progressing rather slowly…

- - - 25% complete - - -

He began to explore the Web while waiting,
quickly becoming entangled.
He signed into Facebook to take a look
at the girls who habitually post pictures –
not believing in their beauty until receiving at least 15 likes,
their confidence depending on the comments. 
He scrolled down through the plagiarized quotes,
the list of borrowed song lyrics – copied & pasted.
What’s the point?
To pretend that you have it figured out more than most?
To make people think on the other side of their screens,
“Hey, yes! By God, that’s it! He’s found it!”
The meaning of life in a post.

- - - 50% complete - - -

 How confusing…
He signed out, began perusing through the links,
looking for his calling,
the dream,
the scheme,
the means
in which he would make all of his money.
How about a firefighter?
A liar A lawyer?
Or what about a psychologist?
He began to lose himself in the lists
somebody else had devised for him.
He took a personality test so someone else could tell him.
INFJ, it said.
“Oh, that was easy.
Wait… what does that even mean?”

- - - 75% complete - - -

& the search continues…
He gave up, put his headphones on,
put his head in his hands in defeat.
Next thing, he woke up,
not quite sure how long he’d seemingly been asleep.
He looked up to find that the laptop was off,
the update undoubtedly complete.
His reflection was looking back at him in the now black & empty screen.
They stared at each other for a while, analyzing, smiling.
His grandmother opened up the door, startling them.
He paused the song in his head.
“There you are,” she said. “I’ve been looking everywhere for you.”
“Why, yes, here I am.
I guess I’ve been here all along.”

- - - 1%  - - -

28 comments:

  1. This reminds me of my last laptop - I had time to read whole books (nearly) while waiting for it to warm up, let alone install any updates.
    A funny, witty read.

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    1. It's better to read a book while waiting instead of some of the crap on the Internet. Thanks for the read & the comment, Marina.

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  2. You can have a tendency to wander into some pretty weird places.>KB

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    1. Indeed. Sometimes we wander the wrong way. Thanks for stopping by.

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  3. haha...yeah...once you start klicking on links, it can just take you everywhere and you sometimes end up far from where you started out...smiles... the last bit with granny is charming... physically in the room after the mental ride...that has something soothing

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    1. Thanks for the comment, Claudia. Always nice to hear from you.

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  4. ha, this made me smile, so filled with contemporary truth. i keep hoping that once we catch up to technology, we will see a shift back the other way, back to ourselves.

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    1. Exactly! I hope for the same. Thanks for stopping by.

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  5. I really liked this journey. Sometimes those updates do seem to take a while, and one really doesn't (for some reason) want to walk away while it is happening. Ya, the stuff on Facebook sometimes...so true, what's the point? So many seem out to 'educate' their followers, to tell them what to believe. And ha, INFJ....I think that's what I am. Smiles. I like the ending with the reflection looking back. After a while, it does seem we become 'one' with our screens!

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  6. its a quick trip down that slippery slope...and hte next thing you know its been hours...and there are def some things that will get its hooks in you and not let go as well...all the while life goes on around us...us oblivious....

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    1. I'm glad you saw the deeper metaphor here, Brian. You usually do. Thanks for the input, as always.

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  7. Ha! "Yes, I guess I've been here all along.." and yet not so, as you presumed correctly...someday, we will look back on this thing, the internet, and wonder how it all went so awry. Peace, Jason

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    1. I sure hope you're right. Thanks for the comment, Jason.

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  8. Cool piece Alex. I really enjoyed the way you've described the thought-journey in this. Sometimes we search in all the wrong places, and for too long. I'm an INFJ too :)

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    1. Searching in all the wrong places, yes, you hit it on the head. Thanks for stopping by, fellow INFJ :)

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  9. I like the turn in the ending ~ Sometimes after all the wandering and checking all the cool updates, it all goes back to us ~ Nice one Alex ~

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  10. It's the possibility of instantaneous answers to trivial questions, which happen to be passing through my head, that snag me. Nice write, Alex - well captured.

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  11. Wonderfully clever, amusing....and rings true w. the reader. Ha! ~jackie~

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  12. Haven't we all been here...waiting...
    Still waiting..

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    1. As long as we don't wait too long. Thanks for reading!

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  13. I felt like he would find the "meaning of life" while waiting. But at least his grandmother found him. Enjoyed this. Very clever.

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    1. We can't really find the "meaning of life," but we can surely lose ourselves in the process. The meaning of life is to give life meaning. Thanks for the comment, Myrna.

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