Sunday, April 01, 2012

APRIL FOOLS DAY PONDERING

Do you still play April Fools Day jokes on others, or do others on you?

What follows isn't a joke, but I sometimes see humor in unusual places.

I'm less than pleased with the consolidation in one place of personal information increasingly collected based on my internet computer usage. I've made some changes, but it will be interesting to see what happens with the advertisements that appear on my email accounts as time progresses.

Even before my computer use adjustments, what I wrote must have kept the master computer confused about my interests. Consequently, I've been amused by those far-fetched automatically generated ads appearing on my email accounts. I was startled to notice a link for free wild hog hunting in Texas, so when it continued for weeks I figured Texas must really be overrun with pigs. Eventually, I guess the computer figured I didn't want to travel to Texas when I didn't click on the link, or it decided to try a locale closer to where I live. So, the enticement increased with an offer for a free California pig hunting map -- later, more formally, a free boar hunting map (sounds sexist to me, but guess the sows are given a pass.)

During the months I've been pondering if I should undertake such a wild hog hunt, they switched the link to big game hunting in Canada. This took some serious thought. What sort of weapon would I need -- a bow and arrow, or would a firearm be better? I hadn't fired an Army 45, 22 rifle, or 12 gauge shotgun for over fifty years, and even then hadn't been on a hunting trip when I pulled those triggers. Should I get a 30.06 that I've heard about, or do they have other more suitable calibers now? But...I don't like to kill creatures, much less simply for pleasure.

Fortunately, about that time, the wild hog and big game hunting links stopped appearing on my email accounts, but bet they wouldn't have if I had clicked on even one. The proffered links then progressed to trucking jobs -- right up my alley at this stage in my life. Or, the offer was for Isat preparation? These were soon followed by so many choices that I just didn't know which one to pick: attending film school in nyc, getting a cia intelligence degree sounded really exciting, training to be a chiropractor, getting nursing training or becoming a physical therapy aide -- all opportunities just when I'm well past traditional retirement ages.

And then, there are the ads for medications they want to sell me -- all based on various internet searches I've made, I guess, for the multiple diseases, symptoms, ailments, prescribed medicines associated with some of my patients that I need to know about, or some I've heard mentioned that I'm just curious about. There is such a thing as more information than is wanted at times.

I'll be quite content to be entertained with the ads they give me, however far removed from my interests, since I have no intention of voluntarily providing any more specific information about myself. Privacy may be a thing of the past, as has been said, but I continue to insist on wanting the option of whether or not to release my personal information -- how much, to whom, and when.

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15 comments:

  1. JoAnn, I think you may have found a new career...night time commedienne. Still laughing. Dianne

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  2. I couldn't agree with you more JoAnn. I won't put my personal information out there...I'm very uncomfortable doing that; especially with all the weird stuff that goes on these days. I HATE those stupid ads running all over my e-mail account. I haven't seen one for Hog Hunting in Texas...that I can remember; but I have seen some ads for medications. The latest annoyance is one about singles finding other singles in my area. I think I've even seen the name of my town there....that annoys me. I really try to just ignore all of it; but they're showing up more and more. ~Joy

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    1. Joy: I've received some of those single dating ads, too. Forgot to mention them. They haven't been localized to my area -- yet -- so guess I can look forward to that, too.

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  3. A DNR expert just estimated 4,000 wild pigs are running amok in Michigan's woods causing all sorts of damage. So if you become proficient with one or another of those weapons, you could come here and save us from the little monsters. Fun blog.

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  4. Dick: I had no idea there were so many wild hogs all over the country. Years ago I recall a woman saying her husband went to Arkansas to hunt them. Later years I heard stories about hunting them in Ariz., now these ads for Texas and my California. Know they're on the Big Island and at least one of the other Hawaiian Islands. I never heard of them being in Ohio when I lived there, but if they're in Michigan I imagine they're in the other Great Lakes States. I wonder what other states they're in?

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  5. No, I never did go in for April Fools jokes/pranks. In fact, I find it mildly annoying the way serious news broadcasts (radio and TV) intersperse April Foolery with real news. How in the world am I to discern the difference with the way our Congress goes on?

    Happy hunting!
    Cop Car

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    1. Cop Car: I always enjoyed April Fools day gags as long as they weren't carried to an extreme. I agree news programs can do without these gags, but then management dictates we have silly entertainment-meshed-news so I guess the newspeople do what's required to stay employed and garner those rating numbers, thus advertisers. Your taste in news and mine has long since been subjugated to that of greater listener/viewer numbers who want that pap, I guess.

      As for Congress, there's nothing to discern, it's come to be one big Fools Day there in April or any other month.

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  6. BTW: Were you as stunned by the outcome of the OSU vs KU game as I was? We, in Kansas, appreciate that OSU took it easy on our boys. *grinning*
    CC

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    1. Cop Car: Considering how the OSU vs Kansas game went in the first half, I think it speaks well for Kansas that they came back as they did. (My husband would have been sputtering about what OSU should have done differently.) I'm not sure, but I think Ohio State was favored to win. I only watched the game spasmodically and had only paid attention this year after I wrote that blog piece -- was curious to see how many of Ohio's four teams survived and for how long. I haven't really known much about any of the teams, but heard a sports reporter today say Kansas was traditionally an NCAA basketball powerhouse. I didn't mention in an up date that two of the Final Four teams were from Kentucky. I'll probably check to see which of the Final Two playoff teams emerges as NCAA champion tonight -- Kentucky or Kansas. Think I heard Kentucky is favored, so Kansas could really pull an upset. Good luck! Enjoy!

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    2. Did you see Ronmey pretending to be amused by his staff's April Fool's joke? They set up an event, and he walked into a room of empty tables. He couldn't even really laugh. What a turkey.

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    3. Hattie: No, I missed that April Fools joke, but have no difficulty imagining Romney not being able to deal with the situation.

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  7. I don't watch the basketball games, myself, Hunky Husband being the sports fan in our family; but, even he went to bed before last night's game was over. Just before I went to bed I checked the game. It stood at KU 38 to UK 48, as I recall; but, UK made two 3-pointers within about 30 seconds, so I went to bed too. A Dr J in Ohio, with whom I used to work, will be high for the next month over his UK's win!
    Cop Car

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  8. I hate the ads and consider them an intrusion. The ones about 'great senior men looking for you' really leave me lol. I wish they'd be honest and say "crabby old farts looking for perfection".

    That said, I'm glad that our Buckeyes made the Final Four!!!

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  9. Well, I don't think I would have been that amused to see empty tables at a so-called event, either, so I can empathize with Romney. I laugh as I type this.

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  10. I find it so confusing knowing what is "safe" to release re: information. I just got my first smartphone, but to get my contacts moved from my mac computer to the android phone, I needed to transfer contacts to google. I have this horror image in my mind of google knowing all my contacts. Then I think about how little I have to hide from the world -- but with new Supreme Court ruling, even if I'm mistaken for someone else who does have something to hide, I can be strip-searched if I'm arrested. This lack of privacy has gone too far, and gotten very complicated.

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