you make me feel savvy when in reality it's you who are well-designed.
with my ever-changing needs it seems you have magically aligned.
you make me feel cool when i hold the apple emblem out for passersby to view.
so much better than my old phone, which i accidentally dropped in the loo.
because of you i don't feel as old when talking to my high school students,
even though now i make online shopping decisions which are not so prudent.
you introduced me to Pandora, which opened my ears to musical delights.
you exposed me to so many blogs my mind may explode from daily insights.
you actually helped usher me to my new beauty-revealing art.
i {heart} you, iphone.
Thank you from the down deep bottom of my beauty-hungry heart.
Meg
Before, I had an old flip phone that I had replaced three times with insurance because of one drop in a puddle and two drops in toilets. So, you can see why it took me years to believe I had the responsibility level to handle a smart phone. [This "dropping" tendency also encouraged me to fit my new iphone 4 with an otterbox case. I am VERY happy with it. It's worth the fifty bucks, all the way. www.otterbox.com.]
The iphone has seriously changed my life. And I'm not embarrassed to tell you that (nor am I embarrassed to write a love note, apparently).
1. I am thankful for access to e-mail. It was a fun moment to have a Michael's employee scan a 40% off one item coupon that I would have forgot at home before. 2. And, I am a much more avid texter now (which helps me maintain relationships with some of my most busy friends). 3. I love the instagram app. I like being able to add filters to my pictures even though I'm not really a photographer (yet).
4. My life as a traveler has been changed. I've found my way much easier now that I'm not waiting for an outdated GPS to catch up to my turn. 5. The internet access is also life-changing for quirky reasons. When I think of a strange question, like "I wonder how many zoos there are in America..." I can look it up. If I lived in a time of encyclopedias and card catalogs (which is how it was when I was a kid), I would have never ever found out. How many do you think there are? Look it up. Because you can.
6. I know my husband is thankful that he bought me the iphone when he plays Words With Friends at all hours. He was especially thankful when he played that 70 point word the other day and beat his sister. I deducted his thankfulness by his repeated air punches and when he hissed, "Yes, yes yes, take THAT, take THAT! That's forty three mother frickin' points! (insert semi-scary competitive laugh here)."
7. Also, I love Pinterest more than I love TV. I'll say it again. Maybe you didn't understand me the first time. Every time I push that little push pin icon and add an image to one of my thematic bulletin boards, it's like the joy I feel during the reveal on a design show. It's that fun. Let me know if you need me to invite you. 8. And, I love the word tweet. Don't you? "Twitter" is fabulous word-painting, and when I find someone to follow who I would never otherwise have a connection to, I feel empowered. Oh iphone, you're so great. [giggle]
Looking back on my technology-fearing life, I've turned a corner. I've especially been able to see the benefits of technology this summer. This blog, for example, has helped me to break into a huge part of my untapped and waiting identity as a writer. Who knows how much longer my thoughts would have marinated before putting pen to paper if blogs didn't sky-rocket in popularity and become accessible and affordable to maintain? Years? Decades? Maybe never.
I still have hang-ups. I'm still allergic to facebook. I know I'll have to build up antibodies take small doses eventually. But, I'm happy exploring other things of beauty on my iphone in the meantime.
I know God loves that I have an iphone. I know this sounds completely wack. But listen: I see beauty. Don't you? And, yes, I think just breathing it in and saying, "look!" is great. But, it's also great to dig into who He has made me to be as a beauty seeker/maker/revealer. My iphone camera is a tool to document, archive, and remember the beauty of His world. He likes it. I know it. And the more I ask for it, the more overwhelmed I am by the moments with Him, taking it all in. And (I know it sounds so different from the "anti-technology" me a year ago) the camera on my phone is heaven-sent. The design of the phone itself is creation and art.
Now, my catalog of found inspiration is phenomenal, and I've only had the phone since April. 9. Overall, the best thing about the phone is the camera.
I close with a moment of found inspiration that I would have forgotten without my iphone. [Skeptics: I'm serious. The iphone 4 has a really great camera for detail and object photography. And it's with me at all times. So, it's accessible and realistic.]
Isn't it gorg? This is a very do-able window display styling at Anthropology I experienced a few weeks ago. It is officially on file for an event I style, or an art display I add to a room design. To make it: I will purchase an industrial-sized roll of waxed craft string, cut out paper discs (lots of them) in three or four contrasting colors of card stock, break out a large crafting needle, and conjure up a lot of patience before beginning. I would say the key is to measure the space between the discs, and hang or lay out the pieces while I create to decide when to change colors. This will create the wave effect the colors have. It could even be a great nursery application over a crib (those are called mobiles, right? I have a lot to learn). I'll probably make one of these within the next year for some un-known space. But I never would have returned to this project of creativity and beauty if I didn't take a picture of them that day. This is just one of hundreds of reasons to give in to SOME of the available gadgets of our world. They can be used for good.
I love my iphone, and I'm thankful for the beauty-documenting lifestyle it affords me. Thanks Apple. Thanks technology. Thanks trends, for getting into my brain even when I don't want you to. Thanks husby, for buying me a gift that keeps on giving.
May you have eyes to see the beauty. --Meg Tess
