Real World

When are we going to start living in the real world again? With the onset of winter I always feel like I live in some glass cage behind which I am forced to view the world. It’s too cold to walk around, or be outside, so we sit inside our houses watching the sun, the rain, the wind or whatever weather Cape Town decides to have that hour. We heat ourselves with gas heaters, and warm water bottles. We fill our ears with music, and we watch TV all night. Engagement with the great outdoors does not happen frequently.



But as if that isn’t depressing enough, then we spend our days on the internet. We farm in Farmville (hell yes, I’m including you in the generic ‘we’ here since I am sure you have sinned in a similar way). We play scrabble with strangers via facebook in lexulous. We ‘catch up’ with our friends on facebook (actually, we stalk their profiles and check their photos to make sure we are still better looking than them). We blog our diaries and thoughts in the blogosphere.


But in the meantime, real life agricultural crises pass us by in the news. No-one can spell anymore, let alone use correct grammar (especially since “QI” gets you such high points). There is no need to pick up a phone (or even Skype) because all the info you need about a friend is available online. Want to know what an ex is up to? Well, you’re probably friends with him (or at very least mutual friends) so the evidence is a click away and even those of us who can control the crazy find it an irresistible temptation to check out the new girlfriend/house/baby.


I can’t wait for summer since the lure of the beach is greater than the black hole which is a morning spent on facebook.