Today I purchased what is and what will be the first and last gadget of 2006 for me. We'll see if I can hold on to that (damn Macworld!), but I'm going to do everything possible. We plan on 2006 being a year of minimal consumption so we can have a great trip at the end. We don't really need anything anyway. Our cars are running well (finally), last year we did a ton of work on the house and bought furniture, and I have every conceivable piece of tech gear I need. Mac, PC, digital camera, camcorder, iPods, Zen Micro, Treo, XM, blah blah blah. Yuck. Enough.
The foundation for suffering is desire and desire is the root of consumption and consumerism. My job is to intensify and enable that desire; to make it as easy as possible for people to consume. I do see the irony. But people do need things. And it's never good to starve yourself of basic needs or the happiness that some objects provide. There's a difference between a need and a want. A want can always be justified as a need. That's where it gets tricky. So in the same vein, I'll justify my work... My goal at work is to make it as easy as possible for people to find what they're looking for; to guide them as quickly and seamlessly to the right product for the right price from the right merchant. It's that simple. It's not for me to say if one should purchase an item or not, I help make the considered choice. If I've succeeded, then the customer is happy with the experience and will come back the next time they need something. You see, anything can be justified. It is a fine line. Does my work instill desire? In doing so does it cause suffering? Possibly... but I still find good parking spots, so I must be doing something right.
Oh and that gadget is the iHome iH5 clock radio/iPod speaker. It's sweet!
