living in my monitor

I was riding the el home from work last week, listening to Jawbreaker, lazily observing everyone in the train car when my eyes happened upon an ad on the right wall. It was an advert for Blackberry, and it had a picture of a phone and the words "If you can't say it here, you probably can't say it."

That ad is the most telling representation of the way we communicate now, and I bet the creators knew that, and that's why it's so clever. Because the almost the only way we can feel comfortable truly bearing it all is behind a computer screen or through the keypad of our cell phones. Everyone says that technology cheapens communication. But maybe it makes us more sincere.

Because without it, would we really say everything we wanted to? Secrets are easier told in the dark, just as grievances are easier filed in an e-mail. Does it really mean more to say it in person just because it's harder?

But even as I type that, I don't agree. I'm only saying this half-heartedly. I would rather hear something true and real than read it. But don't knock the art of a meaningful Facebook message...