I bought a little megaphone. It's white, with a little green cap on the end you speak into, and a rainbow neck or shoulder strap. It plays a little Chinese tune if both buttons are depressed, and allows speech amplification if only one is. I asked a friend why the strap was rainbow colored, and he told me it was designed for a five year old Chinese girl and not a 23-year old American guy. Valid point, friend.

Appropriate times to use a megaphone are difficult to determine. For example: When a car is blocking the road, do you whip it out and say "MOVE IT" or just wait patiently? How about if you see your friend far away and you want to get their attention? What if you just need to explain what the queers are doing to the soil at a high volume?

And then there's the music button. To be honest, it just sounds like feedback initially, but if you let it keep going it starts to sound kind of like an ice cream truck. I could start rolling through neighborhoods trying to entice whoever remembers what an ice cream truck sounds like from their houses. Then what? Yell at them? Maybe this wasn't the best-thought-out-purchase ever.

Now, as the weather gets worse, I feel less inclined to stand on Wescoe Beach spreading the good word about Net Neutrality, the importance of flossing, what movies and video games are really good, the best way to make chicken, or what the weather will be like tomorrow. On the other hand, I have a blog. Actually, I have more than one blog, but this one here will get updates as frequently as I get the urge to shout at people.

So rather than broadcasting, or narrowcasting, I suppose this is cybercasting, blogcasting, or webcasting. Instead of enlightening (bothering) everyone, I reach only those who are looking. Good enough.

Comments

Sign in to comment