MYNIPPON

Unless you are a Facebook (or Twitter of whatever other app you like) addict, you will still agree with me that is is a somewhat useful tool to stay in touch with friends and family provided your “friends” also do the same.  Unfortunately, that is not what is happening.  I have friends who monopolize my dashboard with just too much information (“I love you all but I don’t want to know if you are bored or just had pizza or are two hours away from your destination”).  I like to think that as long as we update the status whenever there is something more meaningful and substantive, we can all be happy and enjoy learning about each others lives.  It is like people who talk too much at a party; after a few minutes, people start to wander away from them.  No surprise then that I had to defriend some folks and hide updates from others.

Unfortunately, so many people still don’t get it.  Like any other crazy person, they are so obsessed with their own lives and those of others that they cannot have a 2-minute conversation with you without checking their feed on their mobile device.  These are the most annoying people and while they might have the illusion that they have friends, the reality is that unless all their friends are like them, these are the most pathetic, sad, lonely people who find meaning only in their Facebook lives.

That is why it is very interesting to read about what happened to a yoga teacher by the name of Alice Van Ness.  Like any other cool company these days, the offices of Facebook also come up with perks like yoga classes and she is an instructor there and was placed there by a contractor Plus One Health Management.  Now unless you have never heard of yoga, it is not only a workout but also a way to relax your mind and find the mind-body balance.  While it is fine to listen to music or watch television or read (I find reading quite strenuous on the eyes, though) while running on a treadmill or doing other exercises, it is ridiculous to even think of something other than your own breathing and mind while practicing yoga.

Apparently, a Facebook addict wouldn’t stop staring at his phone during a yoga class and when she admonished him not do it, Facebook forced Plus One Health Management to fire her (it is even sadder that Plus One fired her rather than standing up to Facebook by using a simple logic that the instructor was merely following the principles of yoga correctly).  Van Ness said, “We’re not talking about the U.S. government here. We’re not talking about Russia is about to bomb us. We’re talking about Facebook. Something can’t wait half an hour?”  Exactly.  I can’t stop laughing when average people walk around everywhere, even at parties, with a bluetooth headset attached to their ears.  I mean, first of all, as much as you would like to consider yourself critical to the functioning of this planet, the truth you is that you are just one of the seven billion people on the planet.  Indeed, in some cases doctors, firefighters or national defense employees may need to be available during their private time, but honestly, no one really cares if you want to announce to the world that you are in a yoga class.  If you believe otherwise, you are most likely delusional and need medication.  And by the way, if you cannot completely focus on having a conversation with me (and turning off your iPhone unless your kids need to reach you in an emergency) if I am with you, don’t even bother meeting me.