Contradiction

Life is full of contradictions, and I was recently reminded of this.  On one hand I have access to a range of electronics - from the phone to the computer to the printer.  If all these electronic devices are working, they make my life easier.  I can do more work in less time.  And because they are portable and I'm always in communication, I can work on-the-go.  There's no excuse for not getting work done.  I can work anywhere; I can work all the time. Sort of a mixed blessing.  


In reality these gadgets aren't always working.  I get bogged down with updates, backups and trying to stay current.  Downtime can be frustrating.  There's work that needs to be done, but instead I have to spend time figuring out system requirements and software.  And please don't let me lose any data along the way. It's interesting that the technology that makes my work efficient can, at times, be the source of inefficiency.


On the other hand I spend endless hours knitting socks, sweaters, shawls and mittens one stitch at a time.  It's a slow process when you think about it - stitch after stitch after stitch.  Some projects are weeks or months in the making.  Some take even longer than that.  But it doesn't matter.  When it comes to knitting a project, I don't expect to crank it out in a few hours.  I'm in it for the long haul.


The dynamic, rapid pace of technology versus the slow, steady process of knitting. Over the last few days technology has taught me more than I ever thought I'd need to know about external hard drives, operating systems, syncing and cloud storage.  And in the process I was reminded that the age-old craft of knitting is the perfect balance to the fast, ever-changing world of electronics.

After my latest run-in with technology, I need some balance.