There is something about a Pinterest Post titled “The BEST Chocolate Chip Cookies!” Or “The Most Delicious Banana Bread!” That just gets me in the mood to bake. When scrolling through these blog posts, they all have a certain aesthetic to them that creates a whole vibe radiating off the website and into your feelings. One of my favorite recipes to use that I found on Pinterest is a chocolate chip cookie recipe by “Pinch of Yum.” Honestly, just by looking at the post, I can smell warm, soft, gooey, perfect chocolate chip cookies. The post consists of up close and personal pictures of baked cookies with a glass of milk in the background, close-ups of the insides of a cookie, and even pictures of all the ingredients used throughout the process. This post makes it seem like you are baking with the author, rather than baking a batch of cookies by yourself to eat your feelings away. The ingredient list and directions are easy to find on this post, and the descriptions in the blog post are worth the read including personal stories and experiences, the author even includes photo examples of overbeaten. Overall, this post made for such a memorable experience, that I will only ever bake these homemade cookies.
The way this delicious recipe and gooey pictures of warm cookies fall so effortlessly into place on the page is so aesthetically pleasing, you can only wish to one day have a website as beautiful and perfect. What I liked most about this author’s website was the organization. Each recipe had its own page, and it was easy to navigate. From what I could see this author had spent money to customize her website as she wanted it. As a broke college student, that was not an option. I decided to use the resources I was provided and created my website on OpenLab. There have been ups and downs while using this platform, and I almost feel as though I am unable to make any opinion on it just yet as I am still not completely familiar with how it works. I was struggling to get my platform analysis onto a separate page from my piece #1 and to be honest, I still am. Aside from the lack of a homepage, I liked how easy it was to find a theme and compose something on my website, it was much different from using a WordDoc! It will take time for me to understand how to use this platform fully, but I’m sure it will soon become second nature to me.
Final draft of my first piece
Say there is a party on Friday night that you want to go to, the only issue is, you have to work. Your friends continuously ask you to call out of work so you can join them. After some convincing, you decide to finally call out. Wrong. You texted out. Is calling your boss directly to let them know that you can’t make it into work still a thing? With the technology, we have access to nowadays, it is extremely easy to simply text your boss and let her know you are unable to come into work rather than giving your place of work a call. As a young employee is this truly beneficial? Perhaps for now it may seem that way, but when you are older and expected to provide more than just a text, are you going to be able to without issues?
While doing some research I found some extremely interesting statistics from localproject.net. Their research shows that 78% of people wish they could have a text conversation with a business and 80% of professionals currently use text for business purposes.
Bad Connection
Would you rather talk on the phone or text? Personally, I am constantly calling people whether that be FaceTime or a regular phone call. Communicating through texts is often difficult to read, I am always misinterpreting what my friends and family text me because there is no way to read emotion. By calling my mom to tell her I ate moldy cheese and need reassurance that I am going to live, I can clearly hear the lack of patience she has for my overthinking. By talking to my mom directly, I am able to hear her tone of voice and emotions which then help me snap back into the reality of being an adult and that there’s no time to cry over moldy cheese… Or is there? The Local Project research shows that about 50% of adults 18-24 say text conversations are just as meaningful as phone calls. I believe that phone calls over texting display a higher amount of maturity and responsibility, and will help you succeed.
Screen Time
Has it ever concerned you how much you rely on your phone? And I don’t mean in a sense where you call your mom once a week at college to let her know you’re okay or call your dad on the side of the highway after getting a flat. I mean by checking your “For You Page” the second you wake up or scrolling through your Instagram feed after snoozing your alarm for 30 minutes. What I find most interesting about moments like these, is that I always find myself watching “My 5 am Morning Routine” where these influencers claim they don’t go on their phones first thing in the morning. This seems quite literally impossible, which leads me to my next point.
If these influencers have the perfect morning routines or day in my life videos, is that a true representation of their reality? Do they always communicate in a positive way with their loved ones? Are they just Perfect? No, as Hannah Montana once said “nobody’s perfect.” But the image that’s expected online is perfection. At the end of the day we have to think about how social media is not an accurate representation of the lives we actually live, not everyone that interacts with you on social media is going to treat you the same in person. These aspects of communication vary depending on the person, so don’t jump to any conclusions about one specific person you talk with online. It is much easier to hide behind and screen and keyboard than to speak face to face. These can cause both positive and negative impacts on our lives.
For example, the technology we use today has evolved so much that during a pandemic, we were able to keep in touch with our loved ones that we were unable to see for close to a year. Features such as Facetime or Zoom brought face-to-face interactions with friends and families during difficult times. However, something to think about is the negative impacts the use of technology has on us. Could we be missing out on opportunities to grow a relationship by fighting over text when we could easily call the person and hear them out over the phone to work through things together? Part of me feels as though the amount of communication we have due to technology could negatively impact our relationships in a sense of lacking personal and emotional connections. However, with communication being so simple and easy, parentcentre.org states that relationships are strengthened thanks to technology and the constant communication we can keep with our partners. What do you think?
Oddly enough, after reading and writing about technology, I was only reminded how difficult it can actually be. The internet and technology are something I will never be able to fully wrap my head around. If it weren’t for technology, I wouldn’t be struggling to create a webpage to post this piece of writing on. Sure, it’s different for everyone, but I am honestly not sure I will ever figure out how to make my homepage. This is totally okay because as I continue to write on this platform and explore all the features it has, I am learning new things and am one step closer to having the platform I desire.
Resources
- https://theparentcentre.org.za/impact-of-technology-on-communication/
- https://www.localproject.net/docs/texting-stats/
