Everyday Systems: everydaysystems: message 62 of 74

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--- banakabwe <> wrote:

> just to say hi looking forward to the discussions.

Welcome, Banakabwe.

This groups is a little slower paced than nosdiet, but
useful, I think, and has the potential to be a lot
more so. I read an article recently that Dell was the
last big computer manufacturer that assembled their
computers in the United States. The reason they can
afford to do this, despite high labor costs, is their
incredible, relentless focus on efficiency. The
engineers high five each other every time they take a
single five cent screw out of a design, because that
five cent screw, times thousands of computers, adds
up. Especially efficient workers on the factory floor
are video taped and their techniques analyzed and
shown to other workers. What does this have to do with
everyday systems? Just this: imagine all the
metaphorical five cent screws in the personal, daily
habits of billions of people. And I don't think we'd
have to look as deeply as the five cent screw level,
we'd find unnecessary and misplaced beams and support
structures. This disparity of attention is astonishing
to me. Does a factory product really deserve that much
more attention than a human being, than all human
beings? I'm not knocking Dell, I'm knocking us. Think
of the potential. "Everyday systems" is a pathetic
little start in that direction, at least.

Now that I'm on my monthly resolution kick, I should
have at least one new system or potential system a
month to report on.

January's resolution is of a personal, somewhat
embarrassing nature (don't worry, nothing
Seinfeldian), so I'm going to refrain from reporting
anything on it beyond "so far, so good. I think this
monthly resolution thing has potential." 

February's (which I've already gotten started on
because I started January's in December, didn't
realize that I was going to make this 1/month at the
time) is proving tougher, but I'm still optimistic. 

Problem: married people often let their guard down a
little too much and act in silly, undignified ways
which are not worth the little, tainted amusement they
provide. Little by very little, you erode mutual
respect. I think this is especially problematic
nowadays when we are all encouraged to act like
overgrown children well into middle age (and beyond?).
We're permadolescents (a very desirable marketing
demographic, by coincidence, I'm sure). 

Example: making "beep-beep-beep" backing up truck
noises while opening the front door for my wife.
Funny? Not really. A big problem in itself? No, but
times a few thousand similar incidents, yes,
potentially. Note: the "beep-beep-beep" was a one time
thing, most of these are. But they have a common,
lousy, instantly recognizable core.

Solution: I'm not sure this is a solution, it's more
of an experiment in perception and self control. I'm
going to see how many days I can go without such an
undignified display (UDD). No UDD means I mark a
"good" green day on my calendar, one or more means red
for failure. UDD sounds sort of WMDish, to give it an
exaggerated, appropriately inappropriate seriousness
and urgency. How do I determined whether a UDD has
occurred? You'd think it would be very fuzzy and
subjective, but I'm astonished at how obvious it's
been, now that I've been paying a little attention
(I'm also astonished at how hard it's been). Just to
be sure, before giving myself a green for the day,
I'll double check with my wife, but since my
resolution I haven't had her catch anything I didn't.

Is this a "serious" enough problem to warrant such
attention? Ridiculous and small doesn't mean it can't
be serious, in the long run. Isn't there something
nice about being silly and young at heart? Sure there
is, to an extent, but that extent is way
overemphasized these days. I'm not planning on going
from goofball to dour puritan, just maybe childish
silly to childlike playful. And hey, if I'm wrong,
it's just a month. Another pro of monthly vs. yearly
resolutions: you can afford to be wrong. And the
realization that it isn't a problem worth solving is
worth something in itself, it won't continue to nag at
me, as it has been.

Reinhard