My iPad Guilt
So, I finally have internet access at the cabin thanks to a new iPad. On the one hand I’m happy to have easy access again. I like going into town to get online as it usually fits with my schedule of errands and meetings but it also means I go in more than I should. I’ve probably been going in 2-3 times a week in recent months rather than the 1-2 times that is really necessary. Having the iPad means that when I do go in I will be able to spend that time talking to folks and developing better relationships rather than staring at my laptop trying to get everything done that I need to get done. It also means I can go back to my 1-2 times a trip frequency. So, I’ll save gas in that sense but lets face it, an iPad or any other computing device is a lot of embodied energy. I look at the oil spill in the gulf coast and know that that is a result of my driving and my consumption. Sure I drive less than most and make a real effort to minimize my consumption but I still consume.
Yes I think this is a fantastically cool device. I can now easily update my blog, check email and update my clients' websites all from home. But it is a bittersweet enjoyment I’m getting today. I know that I could have done without this device.
And let me just go on the record as saying that not only should we not be expanding drilling in the gulf, we should start cutting back on production in the gulf altogether. Yes we’ll have less oil. GOOD. It is well past the time that we should be cutting back our consumption drastically. Getting in a vehicle without thought and need should have been a thing of history… should never have been a thing in the first place. Our consumption generally should always be questioned whether it is a trip in an automobile or the purchase of an iPad or any kind of purchase at all.