“Now it’s an abstract thought, but I’ve been thinking non-stop, ‘bout the fact that my body’s made most out of raindrops.” ~ Switchfoot, Saltwater Heart
A little time on the Emerald Coast was just what the doctor prescribed. The ocean is still in my nose as I’m collecting my thoughts tonight like sea shells on the beach. I’m remembering a unique phone call I had at work a few weeks ago. The memory of it keeps rolling in like waves with a repetitive beating question on its foamy waters crashing against my thighs. What is real? …
(…continued from above…)
…I’ve received many phone calls that were clearly not from humans, but this particular call was a little ambiguous. A few moments at the beginning of the conversation struck me as strange. The voice didn’t sound like the typical virtual assistant, but it also didn’t sound completely human. I explained that the person whom the caller asked for would be at lunch for a few more minutes, and I’d be happy to assist them with anything else. What I heard next was a sigh. And not a small sigh, mind you. It was the kind of sigh that includes the sounds of a motor boat produced by exasperated lips. It seemed really out of place, like the caller was trying a little too hard to be human. I tried to stifle my laughter after the call and wondered…was that real?!
Surely a real person calling a business wouldn’t respond with such an obnoxious outburst. Surely it was AI, and if it was, I suppose I should chalk it up to AI being like a young child learning how to communicate in the world of grown-up humans. A child who sometimes seems smarter than us. 🙂 Regardless of who the mystery caller was, it was too random of a moment not to archive here. It’s ironic that I enlist AI’s help with many thingamabobs in my mental cabinet of curiosities, but when I make a personal call and get a virtual assistant helping me, I raise my voice in exasperation, “REPRESENTATIVE!” Maybe in the very distant future, I’ll be tired of dealing with humans on the phone, and when one takes my call, I’ll be the one responding with a motor boat sigh. Get me an AI agent on the phone!
Toy Story 5 and The Devil Wears Prada 2 made their debut on the movie theater Runway, and can I just say…YES! The music, the fashion, and the continued story of our beloved talking toys. (Oh to go back to the beginning and be a child of the nineties again, playing with my Barbies and Easy-Bake Oven. Can I buy back one of those golden days?) Decades after the release of their classic predecessors, these 2 new movies are centered on the in-Vogue topics of AI and technology. Art mimicking real life mimicking art, like we’re in an infinity cycle of mirror reflections. Who is who, and what is real? And do I love or hate these blurred lines!? (Can I say…both?) This AI-saturated reality we live in is the over-sized card game we’ve dealt to ourselves, for better or for hopefully not worse.
Two thoughts on The Devil Wears Prada 2. 1) I need Anne Hathaway’s wardrobe. I’m head over high-heels and here for the fashion. 2) Miss Main Character and Mr. Love Interest’s conversation about imperfection is the moment that really struck a chord with me (and it connected to a passage in Mona’s Eyes, a book I’m reading!). Real life is full of imperfect moments and challenges to work through. Love, beauty, and art are already in the material of our existence, but they have to be chiseled out and shaped; fashioned with time and patience. I guess that’s why it’s called a work of art. Anything beautiful takes effort. Having a conversation with AI is like green flag beach weather. Easy breezy, lemon squeezy. Interactions with humans? Could be green! Or red, or even purple flags waving their warnings…stay out of the water! Tensions, facial expressions to decipher, imperfect moments, laughter, and effort. Real life.
A particular lyric from The Little Mermaid comes to mind: “You want thingamabobs? I’ve got twenty. But who cares. No big deal. I want more. I wanna be where the people are…” With movie characters such as mermaid Ariel and plastic Barbie longing for the real world of humans, why do I try to cover up my humanity with attempts at perfection? And why do I take any minute of this precious existence for granted? It’s a riveting thought to wrestle with.
Yes, the advancement of technology is truly amazing! And…so is a relaxing day in nature. Walking hand in hand with my five year old nephew during a family nature walk in Florida is a memory I’ll never forget. He was telling me all he knew about nature and animals. “Honey bees will die if they sting you.” I could hear the passion in his little voice. “That’s why we have to look out for them and leave them alone. Nature is pretty much all good if we just leave it alone.” Be still my heart, did he really just say that? I want to see all the wonders of nature through his ever-observant eyes.
Sitting in the sand during our last night at Miramar Beach, I was surrounded by dark blue after a sunless sunset. The waves were even darker than the sky. Gazing at the vast expanse in front of me, the darkness of the horizon caused the waves that looked far away to suddenly seem very close. It was an overwhelming feeling that made me want to run away…and also never want to leave. It was like this feeling just rushed in with the water that was stretched out in front of me and took my breath away. I felt so alive in that moment. Staring out at the water makes me think deeper and more creatively. I think of the ocean as a metaphor for all of life, and I’ll never tire of hearing artists sing about it. Since our bodies are made up of so much water, maybe the best way to try to be human is to just be with the ocean. I’ll climb aboard that reality.
AI feels like a hybrid creature, created by humans and our sea of technology. It makes me think about mermaids. I grew up on Disney princess movies and fairytales, so mermaids were a popular theme in my reality. Ariel was the first Disney princess I knew, so she holds a special part of my world. If I were a mermaid, I’d sell all the sea shell thoughts I started collecting at the beginning of this story and buy a day on the shore – where time-blindness is welcome. Just so I could look out and…wonder in silence. But, if emotions took on the form of water, you would find me in the ocean, going deeper and ever curious-er…
“My hope is anchored on the other side with the colors that live outside of the lines…” ~ Switchfoot, Back to the Beginning Again
*Photo from Miramar Beach trip
Happy release day to Forever Now …
Blue Moon Muse 