Post The Picture, Or Not--I Mean, How Can I Not...?

 Social media's a strange animal. It's a place to brag, to complain, to share news whether or not anyone wants to hear it. It's like being able to produce a Family Christmas Letter every day of the year.

Some are more prolific than others.

I access social media more than some, but definitely not more than others. I'd like to think I'm striking a proper balance...not too much, not too little. Because I post something every day, I see things every day. I see friends post pictures of their vacations, their kids as they head off to school dances, their pets, their kids at graduations, even what food they eat. 

I'm guilty of doing the same (except for the school proms pictures...).

I try to limit what I post. I could post more, and I could post less. The other day we had the family over and I snapped a photo of our grandson. Now, I could post pictures of that little treasure all day long. For us, he's the greatest thing--even surpassing sliced bread. Because I've seen friends post pictures of their grandchildren, I know why they do it and I understand the desire to get those adorable pictures out there.

But, should I be posting those pictures?

I could ask the same question of other things. Should I post pictures of my family at the beach when many people would love to go to the beach and are unable to do so? Should I post pictures of my kids and now grandkid when others would love to have children and grandchildren in their lives and are unable to do so? I've thought about this a lot, especially when I see photos of friends on vacations I'd love to visit, or at concerts I'd love to attend. I'm happy for them--I really am. It's fun to see my friends having a good time.

The picture was adorable, baby asleep aside some apples. It's one of billions of photos posted that day. But for us, it's so much more than a photo...so much more. How can I not post it? 

Exactly.

Wanting Things...

 Wanting things...

For fun, I'll get on Facebook Marketplace and see what's for sale. People post pictures of things they want to sell. They present the best side of the things, make them look appealing, look wonderful. I used to spend time on KSL Classifieds, but Facebook has an easier-to-use interface.

I really shouldn't do it. 

I shouldn't do it for a couple of reasons. First, these are mostly things I DO NOT NEED. That's the biggest reason not to look. Then there's the price of things...don't really have the disposable income to spend on stuff I don't need. I think that's why I like shopping at thrift stores. There I can buy things I don't need and not spend a lot of money on them.

No, I shouldn't be wanting things I don't need and can't afford. It makes life a little miserable, if a person dwells on these kinds of things. There's a reason we can't get everything we want. Life wasn't meant to be that way, because humans tend to want more and more stuff...they get greedy and a greedy person is not a good person. Then, if they happen to get what they want, then they want what they can't get, want what others have. It also makes people believe they should get stuff just because they want it or that it's not fair that others have stuff they can't have.

I'm old enough to notice something else, too. There are times when I've wanted something (something I didn't necessarily need...) and I've bought it. It never quite seems to be as special as I thought it would be. I would love a drone because I love photography. I've had a couple of drones in the past, but they were on the cheap end and they didn't take good photographs--sort of defeats the purpose. But I know if I were to spend good money on a good drone, it would probably sit in my room most of the time, unused. It would be really cool, but I'd most likely get bored and go underused.

And the last reason I should stop looking at things for sale on social media is because spending more time on social media isn't good for me in general. It's full of people (mostly...) twisting the truth about how wonderful their lives are, showing everyone where they've traveled, the accomplishments of their children, how cute are their pets. I know, I know...I do it, too.

No, I shouldn't be looking at the things people are selling, but knowing me as I do, I'm sure I'll do it again.

I Never Really Wanted A Swimming Pool Before...Until Now

This isn't a picture of Tuscany (of course, having never been to Tuscany, I have no idea what it looks like...). It's a picture from my mother-in-law's dinning room window at sunset. I thought it looked like a non-Utah place so I snapped a picture.

Her neighbors put in a pool a few years ago.

I've never really wanted a pool, but this summer...boy, it sure looks fun.

In all the places I've lived in my almost fifty-five years, I've never lived in a place that had a pool. Since I've lived in Utah most of my life, I always looked at pools like I've looked at boats--pretty impractical. It's only really hot about three months out of the year so the rest of the time, they're just a big hole in the ground, or above ground (pools, not boats--boats are a big hole in your wallet...).

But something about this summer. I see that pool from my in-law's window. There's also a new pool a few doors down from our house and we can hear kids and adults splashing and having a good time.

Pools are many things, but to me the've always been expensive. In our little town, in order to put in a pool, you've got to fully fence the area surrounding it. Fences, like pools, can be pricey. I'm sure there's other things you've got to do before you can have a pool, but I know about the fences.

I've often wondered if I had the means to put in a pool, would I? Even though they're expensive and impractical, boy would it be nice to have one, especially this summer.