7 ms·

Pressing twice in case you "didn't depress it enough" is perfectly fine and understandable. However, standing there repeatedly slapping or pressing at the thin

Pressing twice in case you "didn't depress it enough" is perfectly fine and understandable. However, standing there repeatedly slapping or pressing at the thing like a rat trying to get another dose of heroin is crazy to me.

colejohnson66 10y ago
I'm guilty of pressing it repeatedly sometimes just because I'm bored
- throwanem 10y ago
  You shouldn't be guilty about that. You're doing the button a favor. Its only reason to exist is to be pressed, to be useful. It was good at that once. And now it isn't, because it's no longer connected to anything meaningful. The world has moved on, and its purpose is gone, and it is unaccountably still there. And it's durable, of course, being made for outdoor use, and so it stays pretty much the same even though no one really cares about it or looks after it any more, day upon day and year upon year, and it stoically refuses to show much sign of its advancing age and the existential uncertainty which now pervades it, and every day puts it one day further away from its memories of brighter days long gone. Days when it was useful. Days when it mattered. And then someone comes along who's bored. Hey, there's nothing better to do, so you push the button. Maybe you push it a few times, maybe a bunch of times. Maybe just once. Doesn't matter. You're not as bored now. And the button gets to be useful again. Not in the same way as it used to be. Doesn't matter. Useful again. Making someone's day a little bit better again. Worthwhile again. Even if only for a minute. Don't be ashamed of that. Never feel guilty about that. Small kindnesses matter, too. Me, I just like the sturdy feel of the switch.
  - drdeadringer 10y ago
    > You're doing the button a favor. Its only reason to exist is to be pressed, to be useful. It was good at that once. And now it isn't, because it's no longer connected to anything meaningful. The world has moved on, and its purpose is gone, and it is unaccountably still there. Now I want a story about a button who wants to be pressed. It doesn't do anything, it serves no function, it flags no signal... it's just there to be pressed. For petty Human psychology, so the Human can feel more comfortable in a robotic landscape. "Please, press me. Put your fingertip on me and push me inward. You'll feel better. I will be fulfilled. My purpose will be actualized. You will feel such a subtle pleasure you won't even notice, but you will fall asleep happier tonight. Just by pressing me. Please. Press me."
    - throwanem 10y ago
      Self-awareness would be a terrible thing to inflict on a decommissioned crosswalk button.
      - drdeadringer 10y ago
        "The existential crisis of a decommissioned crosswalk button: a memoir"

colejohnson66 10y ago

I'm guilty of pressing it repeatedly sometimes just because I'm bored

throwanem 10y ago
You shouldn't be guilty about that. You're doing the button a favor. Its only reason to exist is to be pressed, to be useful. It was good at that once. And now it isn't, because it's no longer connected to anything meaningful. The world has moved on, and its purpose is gone, and it is unaccountably still there. And it's durable, of course, being made for outdoor use, and so it stays pretty much the same even though no one really cares about it or looks after it any more, day upon day and year upon year, and it stoically refuses to show much sign of its advancing age and the existential uncertainty which now pervades it, and every day puts it one day further away from its memories of brighter days long gone. Days when it was useful. Days when it mattered. And then someone comes along who's bored. Hey, there's nothing better to do, so you push the button. Maybe you push it a few times, maybe a bunch of times. Maybe just once. Doesn't matter. You're not as bored now. And the button gets to be useful again. Not in the same way as it used to be. Doesn't matter. Useful again. Making someone's day a little bit better again. Worthwhile again. Even if only for a minute. Don't be ashamed of that. Never feel guilty about that. Small kindnesses matter, too. Me, I just like the sturdy feel of the switch.
- drdeadringer 10y ago
  > You're doing the button a favor. Its only reason to exist is to be pressed, to be useful. It was good at that once. And now it isn't, because it's no longer connected to anything meaningful. The world has moved on, and its purpose is gone, and it is unaccountably still there. Now I want a story about a button who wants to be pressed. It doesn't do anything, it serves no function, it flags no signal... it's just there to be pressed. For petty Human psychology, so the Human can feel more comfortable in a robotic landscape. "Please, press me. Put your fingertip on me and push me inward. You'll feel better. I will be fulfilled. My purpose will be actualized. You will feel such a subtle pleasure you won't even notice, but you will fall asleep happier tonight. Just by pressing me. Please. Press me."
  - throwanem 10y ago
    Self-awareness would be a terrible thing to inflict on a decommissioned crosswalk button.
    - drdeadringer 10y ago
      "The existential crisis of a decommissioned crosswalk button: a memoir"