Did you get my email?

Today I was so busy I didn’t even have a chance to check my email. Messages piled up with no regard to my busy schedule. While I was in meetings, these electronic newsy bits kept piling up.

Listserves are the bane of modern existence. People chatted away, though I wasn’t’ there to follow the thread. When I finally looked at my inbox tonight, three was an entire inane conversation about something really important and half the members did not participate.

I sent an email to over 9,000 people last night and accidentally forgot to change the email return address to something other than my own. Consequently, I wound up getting all sorts of responses ranging from pleas for help to complaints about our database system.

Maybe it’s email news subscriptions that are the bane of modern existence. Of course, like listserves, it’s our own darn fault. We signed up for them, so we shouldn’t be upset when they show up. But how much information does one really need, anyway? I read the news articles and promptly forget what I read, but boy I sure had to have that information for some reason.

No wait—it’s spam that is the bane of modern existence. We have a pretty good filter at work and an address to send it to in order to prevent future messages from different sources. Lately there has been an outbreak of spam from Lilly—or something that purports to be the pharmaceutical company. I keep forwarding them to the filter and they keep popping up like e-weeds It just takes time away from anything else I want to do.

We all ask ourselves: what did we do before email? I guess we picked up the phone and asked a question, got an answer and went on our way. People email me from their offices located a few feet from mine. Why not get off your duff and come see me?

You know what email is? It’s free. We love free. We will use the heck out of free. Not that we should be charged for it, like text messaging or something. Just be sensible. Think before you type. Ask yourself: is this message necessary?

Don’t mind me. I’m just tired tonight.