IT and IT²

“I’d like to ask for permission to access your computer.”  I heard this request three times last week when I called for IT assistance.   Each situation was totally unrelated and each time there was a need to remotely access my computer.  I’m always a little unsettled by the remote adjustment process, but relieved at the same time.  I usually feel fairly competent with computer issues, but the deeper you go into the “IT world” the more complex and foreign it feels. 

Most everyone knows that IT stands for “Information Technology.”  According to TechTerms.com, IT refers to “anything related to computing technology, such as networking, hardware, software, the Internet, or the people that work with these technologies.  Jobs include computer programming, network administration, computer engineering, Web development, technical support, and many other related occupations.”

In exploring things outside the normal world of events, let me share another experience I had last week. 
As I was relaxing reading a book, I shifted my position to get more comfortable.  This new perspective startled me as I glanced up and saw my reflection in a mirror not far away.  I was immediately struck with an odd sense
of objectivity – as if the reflection wasn’t me.  There was an unusual dual perspective taking place.  The immediate impression was that the composition framed by the mirror was similar to photographs I had taken, although more extreme.  My head was in the left bottom corner, along with a horizon-like straight line made by the brown colored couch I was sitting on.  An oversized white space filled the remainder of the “page.”  Like an art critic, my eyes tracked the entire area several times, always drawn to the bottom left corner, which was weighted and uncomfortably out of proportion.  Surprisingly, my interest kept returning to the white space. The seemingly empty space caused an internal restlessness and curiosity.  If I had actually taken this photo, what would be the implication of the empty space?  What was the relationship with the head and linear line?  As if in answer to the
last question, I saw my head transform into a mature tree growing from the brown earth (couch).  My hair became leaves and the facial features emerged as a burly mass of thick branches.  Gradually the earth scene shifted back to the original “self-portrait.”  

Again, I questioned the implication of the white space. What was missing? For a moment I played with the idea of a bubble filled with my thoughts written in words, like a cartoon.  From there, I seriously began to consider what my thoughts were and how they might be displayed.  Without effort or even acknowledgement, the white space became a stage on which my thoughts performed.  Not in linear procession, but it was more a dreamlike emergence and undulating motion.   As thoughts entered my mind, they took shape and form on the mirror white space.  I quickly realized the key was that I had to think or imagine it first, before it transferred to the mirror stage. It was as if my thinking gave the concept freedom to express itself.  The stronger the emotion or more intense the thought, the more pronounced the expression or performance became.  I don’t remember detecting a time lapse. It was more like a PowerPoint presentation where my mind was the laptop with coded information, as well as, the
projector that displayed the larger images on a screen. 

As I explored further, I came to realize that my actual perception (or anyone’s) was like a projector that cast out an overlay of ideas on any event in any day.  A perception helps to shape and color the “white space” of a day.  The white space (day) may not be as flat as the reflection of the wall.  It may have mounds or folds and shadows that give definition to the overlay of ideas.  The awareness and use of a dual perspective would be able to decipher the
differences and make appropriate assumptions to benefit the self.

This blog doesn’t come to any resolute ending.  It is simply to acknowledge that like our essential and highly regarded Information Technology, there is also a vast Inner Technology.  I’m calling it IT².  I find the IT² experience more fascinating than foreign, and more cooperative than complex.  Need an IT² tech?

Be sure to check out the SELF-EXPOSED Gallery, too.

The SEARCH is on. Join me.