this just in...i am way cool

as week 2 of my current vagabond-dom around this country has come to an end, i sat in the back seat of my friend’s explorer heading north on interstate 35 from oklahoma city to kansas city. i was reading over today’s usa today due mainly to the fact that there is nothing to see along the previously mentioned interstate. they had a “special” section e today that was all about technology. as i read through it, i discovered something that shocked me a great deal: i am incredibly hip.

the main item that they included in their review was, of course, the apple i-pod, an item i both love and detest at the same time. they interviewed a series of teenage girls who swooned over the fact that you can get an i-pod mini in blue OR pink. “they look so cool.” one of them said. i felt a sense of smug superiority come over me as i remembered the purchase that i made over two years ago. a small (at the time) hard drive capable of storing up to 15,000 mp3s. you can plug headphones into it AND use it as an external hard drive. this 20gb miracle also allowed me to record my own stuff directly to it. then apple ruined my joy. now everyone has one of these devices…albeit not nearly as multi-functional as the “dinosaur” that i travel with. while my jukebox is not nearly as sleek and “cute” as the i-pod and it’s contemporaries…it was far cheaper, and requires no special software to operate. the i-pod revolution is in full swing, and i can rest assured that i was ahead of the masses on this one.

the next thing they included in their article was a slew of digital cameras. again, this is all the rage right now. while, digital cameras have been around for several years now, it was their focus on the new, accessible digital slr (single lens reflex) models. with reviews of no fewer than 5 compatible cameras, they praised the technology. i looked down at my feet and smiled at my year old digital slr, a christmas gift to myself last year. yes, again, i was on the cutting edge of consumer-level gadgets and, consequently, all things “sweeeet.”

the articles progressed into various other categories of remarkable little gizmos and trinkets that are capturing the wallets of fellow techno-geeks all across this great, modest-spending country. they settled on the subject of video games. microsoft’s xbox was talked about with great enthusiasm. at the focus of this fervor, was the new bungie release (and cultural guidepost) “halo 2.” now, i know that millions of people lined up around the corner at midnight a few weeks ago to grab this hot, new game that we all have been waiting for for over 2 years. but, the attention and praise of the xbox is what struck me. i was the third of my friends to purchase an xbox a while back, but considering the number of gamecubers and playstation…ers i know, i felt a bit of redemption due to the recent popularity of another of the toys that inhabit my little apartment.

what does all of this mean? well, simply…even though i do not own a blackberry, i am still proud to be at the forefront of most of the technology trends that continue to captivate our country. man, it’s great to be cool.