Sunday, February 14, 2010

In the know

I love to be "in the know." I don't know how to describe it beyond the fact that I just love to know as much as I can about everything - people, places and things (yep, all of the nouns).

I've known this about myself for a long time, but just recently I have noticed that I'm also a researcher. When I'm reading a story online, if there is a link, I'm probably going to click on it. Whether it provides some more details about whatever I'm interested in, has some photos or a video to watch or presents a new topic to consider, I'm hooked. Basically, I'm a constant clicker which leads me to some very interesting places on the web.

Today I had lunch with my friend Cassie and her husband, Tucker. It was so funny because at one point Tucker and I were comparing information that we have learned recently from the CIA world factbook. Apparently Tucker is a fellow researcher. We were talking about how neither one of us like to just read one story - we want to know more. We will go investigate to find the background information, more details on the story or what others are saying about it. Why do I love to know more?

I'm also a blog clicker. Ever since I started my blog back in July, I have become a big blog reader and fan. I love to see what other people are writing, what kind of style they use and get updates on my friends. Oftentimes I find myself reading a friend's blog, clicking on another blog they follow, clicking on something in that and before I know it, I'm lost in the blog-o-sphere (and I love it!).

Here's a good example - I was just reading my friend Caty's blog and she was talking about her ideal cast for a new movie based on the book The Hunger Games. Well, I'd never heard of The Hunger Games before, so I went to look it up on amazon.com and this is what I found. Did I mention that I also followed her link to some girl named Lenzi's blog? I don't know Lenzi but apparently she talked about this book on her blog. Now, you ask, did I need to know all of that? Probably not, but at least now if someone else is talking about The Hunger Games, I will know what's going on!

I think my job is well suited for this aspect of my personality. Essentially, it's my job to find out as much as I can about what is happening at HPU and share that information with everyone else. Isn't it great that God knew this about me way before I did and provided me the opportunity to use this crazy quirk for good?

(Did you click on any of the links that I put in this post? If so, you might be more like me than you think!)

4 comments:

  1. Hmmmm... very interesting.

    One question though about the following quote: "Essentially, it's my job to find out what is happening at HPU and share that information with everyone else."

    Are there ethical limits to what you can share? Do you share the "bad" information as well as the "good"? Do you share the questionable things? Are you willing to share things that could hurt HPU students or personnel? In other words, are there boundaries, limits and responsibilities that go along with being "in the know"?

    Inquiring ethicists want to know! ;-)

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  2. PS. I am glad you are who you are and have always trusted you as one of the most ethical people I know! Lest there be a misunderstanding of the above comment!

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  3. FYI- The Hunger Games and it's sequel are fabulous books, very entertaining and easy to read. Also, AJ Jacobs Living Bibically is awesome. He also has one called One Man's Quest to Become the World Smartest Person, in which he reads through the entire Encyclopedia Britannica in a year. They are both great and would be good trip books.

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  4. Dr. Smith - I appreciate your words. They were very thought provoking. This is not a new thought for me, but rather one that I have pondered for a long time. I do think there are ethical issues to examine when sharing the news. There are limitations and I have a responsibility to uphold to God, HPU, myself and everyone else. Maybe being in the know isn't always as exciting and fun as I made it out to be. :) Thanks for keeping me thinking!

    And Dom - thanks for the recommendations! I'm reading The Year of Living Biblically right now and I love it! The Know it All is next on my list!

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