It was dark when I came into work yesterday, dark and cold. Meanwhile, my wife was warm and cozy in bed because the school district we work in had declared a "cold weather day". With temps in the single digits and then a wind chill on top of that pushing them into the -20 range, most of the schools in the state were closed.
This post isn't really about the cold or the photo above. It is about a conversation her and I were having the other day and since she took these amazing photos of the sunrise when she finally got up yesterday, I thought I would share them here.
If you have kids or even pets, I can expect you have all had a time where you spell something out versus actually saying the word because you don't want the animal or child to figure out what you are talking about.
We frequently had to spell out the word W-A-L-K so that our dog Jovi wouldn't bust down the door trying to get outside. As soon as you said that word she would cry and whine and rush around the house like it was on fire. She knew what a walk was and she loved to go on them.
Likewise, there are other words human and pet parents need to be careful about. T-R-E-A-T, I-C-E C-R-E-A-M, you get the idea. Like I said, more than likely you have even been there yourself. It's a pretty sound method until the kid learns how to spell. Then all bets are off.
Now that our dog is passed, we have kind of gotten out of the habit of needing to do things like that. If we want to go on a walk, we simply say walk. It's pretty rare that we use the word treat anymore, but sometimes it happens.
That's why I was kind of thrown when we were driving home from work the other day and @mrsbozz said did you look at the S-I-N-K? Like many fields these days, acronyms are plentiful. My mind immediately started racing trying to figure out what she was talking about.
I figured there were at least two possibilities. Either it was an acronym I was supposed to know and I didn't, or it was something she had talked to me about at some earlier date and this was clearly a test to see if I had been paying attention.
Clearly of the two options the second is the least desirable. It would lead to nothing but shame and misery for me, so I struggled to come up with something to say. Finally, I relented and realized I hadn't considered the third possibility.
I asked her what she was talking about and she quickly explained.
She was spelling the word sink because she didn't want our phone to hear it and then start showing her all kinds of ads for sinks. She just wanted to know if I had had time to look at the faucet that was not working properly.
Pretty funny right?
Funny, but probably another situation we have found ourselves in more frequently lately. Sure, you probably aren't as daft as I am and was able to figure out what was going on, but the idea is still the same.
Have we become digital parents trying to keep our devices and the software, algorithm, AI that drives them at bay? I just find it really funny that this is what we have found ourselves resorting to. I know I can't be the only one who hasn't discussed something and then suddenly I start getting ads or targeted content about it on my phone.
I get it, it's unnerving. Much scarier than a kid throwing a tantrum because they want the cookie you shouldn't have mentioned, or your dog getting the zoomies because they want to go on a walk.
It's your privacy!
Sure, you can turn all that stuff off on your phone. Many people do, and I am sure for a while that is going to work. With everything connected to the Internet these days, it's just a matter of time. Additionally, how long before those smart devices figure out how to spell (like they can't already). I think what would have been more funny is if I started getting ads on my phone for some organization with the acronym SINK.
Articles about Single Income No Kids households maybe.
I honestly tried to find some more, but they seem to be a bit more elusive than I thought. I figured there would be a lot more.
In any event it's an interesting idea to think that our smart devices are somehow like kids that we are trying to withhold information from. It's a reality that I never would have imagined when I was younger, and yet here we are.
Personally, I am not a fan, but I know it is only going to get worse the further down this road we go.
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