Poindexter's Holiday Revelation

I sometimes worry about my own social devolution.

Five days a week, I work in a windowless room surrounded by humming machines and often go for hours without human interacion. When it comes to problem solving or workflow choices, I defer to the way silicon-based life prefers to work, rather than the way carbon-based life would prefer.

Fast-forward to late December 2006, where I'll spend 15 full days out of that digital domain, in in the otherwise normal world of other people. Good news; it seems to be working out.

Like most everyone else, I had a pre-holiday blast of preperation. In a two-day span I visited a Petco for grooming, a Kinko's/FedEx for printing, a few conveniece stores for gasoline and Ding-Dong's, a not-so-greasy spoon for a civilized breakfast, a Barnes & Noble for foreign press, two manic grocery stores so the 'fridge looked full, a yuppie wine shop, and an auto-parts store for a Sylvania Silver Star that was being run by a very cheerful José all by himself. There was half a day of furniture shuffling in there as well; it's all sorta fuzzy.

Anyway, I was not only pleased to have herded all these cats into the proper pens, but to have really enjoyed doing it all. At every point of commerce, I encountered really happy people that were fun to interact with, and ruining the stereotype of the bitter service employee.

So for Christmas 2006, I got time with family and friends, some nifty gifts, and best of all, I found the spirit of the holiday in semi-anonymous others; others whom, by virtue of my day job, I sometimes fear losing touch.

Carry on . . .