01.20.2025 A Decade in the Making

MLK Jr Memorial - Washington, DC

Happy New Year!   

I had hoped to be out and involved in some kind of service project on this MLK Day, but it's just too cold (yes, I am a total wimp about the cold, but I live in Texas and I didn't sign up for this). I'm not about to turn on the television or look at my phone - so I'm putting up a blog post instead.

In smaller, but notable news...this marks my tenth year as a blogger! When I started this blog in January 2015, I planned to write about jewelry - and I have - but in the years since a lot has happened, and I've written about (and will continue to) other things, too.

Refreshing your memory - in January 2015, 

- Barack Obama was in his second term as President of the United States,
- the price of a dozen eggs was roughly $2.50,
- price of silver was less than $14 per troy ounce, and gold was roughly $1,100 per troy ounce,
- our daughter was a college freshman, my husband and I were in our 50s, I still had a consulting firm,
- Instagram was limited to photos and 15 second videos (there were no stories),
- most of us had never heard of a corona virus or an mRNA vaccine.

Today, things are a little different...

World's Proudest Parents and the Dr.

- a man (whose name I will not use), convicted on 34 felony counts, is returning to the White House.  I think he decided to move things inside NOT because of the cold, but because he was worried about a small crowd. I wish this was all a bad dream, but it is a stark, sad reality - and I am worried about our democracy.
- the price of eggs is almost $6 per dozen,
- the price of silver is almost $32 per troy ounce, gold is over $2,700 per troy ounce (this is why jewelry is so much more expensive),
- our daughter has a PhD in biochemistry from the University of California at Berkeley, and is a research scientist at UC San Francisco studying viruses.  We are older, Dad is still working, I'm retired,

- Twitter is now X, Facebook and Instagram are both owned by Meta (I've got some things to say about that, scroll down),

- Covid changed all of our lives, and now we're watching and waiting on H5N1 bird flu.

My original MOO card

This is my 257th blog post - that's a lot of words - and I'm continually surprised at how many of you read them.  I will probably keep writing these things, not because I expect them to be read, but because they are a way to exercise, and often, clear my mind.

Much like taking metalsmithing classes to make - and then sell - jewelry, the blog started as a means to an end; to put myself out in the world in a new way.  Then Covid came along and shut that down. 

Post pandemic, jewelry classes and the blog have become ends in themselves.  I'm learning new things, but not making that many new pieces.  I'm thinking, writing and connecting, but in a very different way.

Which brings me to social media which is - legitimately - taking a beating right now.  Social media and the ability to connect online was a godsend during the pandemic.  It was a way to engage with like minded people when in person contact simply wasn't an option. One of the best parts about coming through the other side of that experience has been the opportunity to connect in real life with people I got to know through their presence on Instagram.

Instagram's parent company, Meta, has made some announcements since the election that are indeed, troubling.  But, it's important to remember that Meta (and its predecessor companies) have never been there FOR US - although that's what they want us to believe.  Without users, there is no Metaverse...they are a parasite that cannot live without a host...but the relationship still has some potential benefits to us.

I understand why some people are considering leaving, or at least reducing their use of social media (I left Twitter because it lost all value for me, and I've never had a TikTok account), but do we really want to abandon it altogether?

I saw a post (on social media - I wish I'd saved it so I could give credit) that asked what if the powers behind Facebook and Meta are trying to drive open minded people OFF the platform? What if they are actively trying to destroy the communities we have created because they are afraid of our power.

I put up a series of Instagram stories (you can find them all in my highlights) asking these questions - and a fair number of people responded saying they were thinking the same thing.  

Even before the election, I tried to be thoughtful.  I did my own fact checking (everyone should have Snopes bookmarked).  I blocked suspicious accounts and scrolled past ads without clicking. Post-election I've used the block option even more, and unfollowed people whose values are not in line with my own, even when I had previously enjoyed their content.

As I said in my stories, social media is a tool - and like any tool - can be used for good or for harm.  Our voices matter, our ability to share information and build community matters.  There are other platforms, and I follow content creators in multiple places - but some, like Substack (which has its own problems) aren't always free to access. 

Instagram isn't free - we see ads, the app harvests our information - but it is accessible without a financial commitment that not everyone can afford.  For me, for now, the good - promoting small and women owned businesses, sharing useful (and properly vetted) information as well as discrediting misinformation, and learning from others - makes it worth staying.

Food for thought - and I welcome your response.  Leave a comment here, or on Instagram.

Until next time.