Last week, I was going through the myriad blogs I read weekly, some of them Tumblr micro-blogs rife with pictures and reblogged quotes and lolspeak. Life Coach got me sucked into the platform last year, and no matter how hard I try, I just can’t really get into it myself. (My latest attempts are the oft-outdated Book Binge and House Hunt).
There’s something so fleeting about the not-really-a-blog blog. Call me old school, but Tumblr is the Forever 21 of blogs for me. It’s trendy and easy - so easy that when it falls apart in the wash two months later, no one really minds.
Me, I like blogs with multiple paragraphs on elaborate platforms that take months to figure out. Consider the fact that this blog was on clunky old Blogger for so long. I was scared to move everything over, because if I lost anything involuntarily, I’d feel like an amputee.
But enough about Tumblrs and how I feel about them in general. I read a few of them. Some are more interesting than others. Somehow, I stumbled - or stumblred - into reading this one by this girl with horrible eyebrows. I try not to be so petty usually, but this girl has over-tweezed her brows to the point that her eyes look beady and rodent-like. Of course, she posts tons of pictures of herself, too.
These are car accident eyebrows. I can’t pull myself away from them, but scrutinizing every picture makes me feel icky and lame. I don’t think this colors my overall interpretation of the life she blogs about, but I thought I’d tell you why I couldn’t stop reading about her in the first place.
I’d written her blog off as shallow, everyday stuff. My blog is no work of art, either, but I try not to take pictures of what I ate for lunch everyday, you know? A lot of her posts are about clothing she wants to buy. In the last few weeks, she purchased an iPhone to use in addition to her Blackberry and has complained about how slow the 3G is, how difficult that makes her life, and…
And I inexplicably wanted to kick her right in the babymaking parts.
Everyday, news trickles in about growing unemployment numbers, international financial crises, and people being forced out of their homes. If I hear one more person whine that the jeans they wanted on Gilt Groupe were sold out or that their snazzy iPhone is too slow, I think I’m going to vomit. Does my blog sound like this?
Perspective is sorely needed. After reading about the iPhone “tragedy,” I knew I needed to flush this Tumblr out of my drop-down menu and make up for people like her. Because bitching and moaning about someone acting like this is not enough. It makes me feel better, but I’m not sure it accomplishes anything.
I called The Bridge, this organization near my old apartment that serves people who are homeless, terminally ill, or struggling with mental illness or addiction. I thought maybe there’d be a chance for me to volunteer some weekend time to help their population. I could serve food, organize papers, talk, instruct people, anything they’d let me. The woman I spoke to said it was too late, the weekend program had closed for good a week ago.
I asked if she had any other ideas for me. I’m only available for a few hours on weekends and am especially interested in working with the homeless population. The woman said there really wasn’t a lot going on with programs like that anymore. In the next few months, many shelters are closing in an economic climate that gets harsher everyday. Bad news.
I’m still looking for places, instead of Tumblr, to spend time. I considered mentorship at New Alternatives for Children, but I’m very emotionally involved in the lives of four kids already. There are a few other ideas floating around. I’ve previously volunteered at Gay Men’s Health Crisis Center and God’s Love We Deliver. If you can suggest any other volunteer opportunities in NYC, please do.
And no, I’m not interested in a facial waxing apprenticeship.
Me again. I’m sure you’re well aware of this, but NYCares is great for the one-off projects or the ongoing ones, and the website is easily searchable depending on when you want to volunteer, what kind of things you’d like to do, etc. Through them I spent some time at God’s Love, but also painted a mural at a school in Harlem, and painted some stuff for a school in Elmhurst. It’s good stuff, NYCares. You have to go to an orientation that is about a half hour, but after that, you’re good to go.
I miss it.
http://www.volunteermatch.org/
You can basically search volunteer opportunities by zip code.
I have never been able to get into Tumblr either. Their platform is not good, Tumblrs and tumblr’ers are indeed disposable and yet non-biodigradable, etc. However, you KNOW how I feel about bad eyebrows. Please email me the blog so I can view the brows myself. Maybe I will anonymously email the Browr’er some tips. (Threading!)
I don’t normally consider myself a community-service oriented person, but I recently brought 7 college freshmen who had to complete a community service requirement to the local Ronald McDonald House to cook dinner for the residents. It was relatively quick, easy, and painless– if the residents are around the house, they’re usually more than willing to chat with you about what’s going on in their lives and it’s a really gentle yet eye-opening experiance into the reality of children’s health struggles an otherwise normal family is dealing with.
It’s indeed frustrating to watch people worry about completely nonsensical stuff. I had the same frustration with people who “just want the election to be ooover”. Good post!
Hi everyone,
Thanks for all the volunteer suggestions. I’ll be looking into each to see what fits into my schedule and good intentions.
KK has volunteered that I participate in a community tumblr about eyebrow grooming. Whaddya think?