If you’re a new reader of my blog posts, I must explain that I write from my own experiences and feelings and try to connect with readers in a unique and sometimes playful way. Perhaps I’m trying to reach those who may have the same thoughts as I or haven’t yet realised that they do.
You may think that this title is peculiar and if you’re expecting a step-by-step guide on “How To Get Dizzy,” your wish is my command (with a twist)
Step 1. “You spin me right round, baby
Right round like a record, baby
Right round round round”…. uh yep, that would work
Step 2. Someone is waiting just for you
“Spinnin’ wheel, spinnin’ true
Drop all your troubles by the riverside
Ride a painted pony let the spinnin’ wheel fly”… hmmmm perhaps something else was involved?
Step 3. “You make me dizzy, Miss Lizzy
The way you rock and roll
You make me dizzy, Miss Lizzy
When we do the stroll
Come on, Miss Lizzy
Love me before I grow too old” … Awww, that’s nice
***STOP***
Read each one carefully and ask yourself, “will these 3 steps actually make me dizzy or will I simply enjoy each moment?”
Recently, I attended a celebration event with 15 friends and family members. We visited a beautiful city; the weather was lovely, the surroundings magical and the company fantastic. For some of us, it was the first time spending 2 days in a row together, socialising and getting to know one another.
We played games, enjoyed good food, boogied a little on the dance floor and sang at the top of our lungs, even if it was out of key. Nowadays, we’re all connected to devices to try and capture “moments in time,” which can be kept forever… forever in a cloud, forever on our profiles and forever digitally. I missed something… in fact I missed quite a few things to be honest, because I was connected in the wrong way.
I FELT present during each “moment in time,” but I wasn’t. When we returned from this wonderful event, everyone was buzzing from happiness and we all hugged and said “farewell for now” and everyone promised to share each other’s photos and videos. I was excited to see them and how each of us experienced our time together. I was shocked, very sad and surprised at myself. This was and is my wake-up call. The videos in particular…everyone around me were singing together and I thought I was part of it.
The moments where I thought I was present, I was not. I watched the videos and in each one, I was glued to my phone, while everyone was dancing and singing around me. I felt sick. I wasn’t the only one, but it has hit me hard because I’m so passionate about being connected to people.
We rely on technology to make some things possible, that never were before and in a lot of instances, it’s truly amazing. My experiences of “disconnections” when I’m at work, on the train or anywhere for that matter have been baffling. A row of people on a train looking down with glazed expressions, people crossing the street engaged with their screens, who never notice traffic, work colleagues who sit in the lunch area not talking, but rather gawking. It’s not comfortable for me to watch this anymore.
After my wake-up-call, everything makes me “Dizzy” now. GIF’s, Emoji’s, face-swaps, quizzes, acronyms, which not all of us get. It’s like Vegas on the internet. The one thing that all of these gadgets and gizmos will never do is replace a memory, a feeling and a moment, whether it’s happy or sad. I will share a menagerie of selfies I’ve taken recently as an example and explain some of my points and the reason for this rather long and hopefully spirit awakening moment in time.
From top left: 1-Event (not present), 2-Sun on my face, on the way to our best friend’s wedding (present), 3-shopping with friend and fun with selfie mirror (present) 4-Selfie with friend trying to get best photo to post on Facebook (not present)
From Bottom left: 1-Bored selfie at home testing filters to make me look better (not present) 2-Me day at the local beach-happy with sun and toes in sand (present),
3 & 4- 2 more selfies for no reason and I couldn’t tell you what I missed, because I missed it amusing myself with snap chat filters (not present)
The moral of this story is, have real conversations, look up, look ahead,live in the moment and capture only things that matter. If there is no person or experience attached, chose wisely as you cannot get time back.
Memories live on forever.
Thanks for reading
With love
Hands-On
Lyrics snippets extracted from Lyric finder
1- (Dead or Alive)
2-(Blood, Sweat and Tears)
3-(The Beatles)