Total Perspective Vortex
What really happened to Trillian? Theories abound, but you can see what she's really been up to on this blog. If you're looking for white mice, depressed robots, or the occasional Pan Galactic Gargleblaster you might be better served here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/cult/hitchhikers/guide/.
Don't just sit there angry and ranting, do something constructive.
In the words of Patti Smith (all hail Sister Patti): People have the power.
Contact your elected officials.
Don't be passive = get involved = make a difference.
Words are cool.
The English language is complex, stupid, illogical, confounding, brilliant, beautiful, and fascinating.
Every now and then a word presents itself that typifies all the maddeningly gorgeousness of language. They're the words that give you pause for thought. "Who came up with that word? That's an interesting string of letters." Their beauty doesn't lie in their definition (although that can play a role). It's also not in their onomatopoeia, though that, too, can play a role. Their beauty is in the way their letters combine - the visual poetry of words - and/or the way they sound when spoken. We talk a lot about music we like to hear and art we like to see, so let's all hail the unsung heroes of communication, poetry and life: Words.
Here are some I like. (Not because of their definition.)
Mamas, Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up to be Smart Girls
(A Trillian de-composition, to the tune of Mamas, Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Cowboys)
Mama don’t let your babies grow up to be smart girls
Don’t let them do puzzles and read lots of books
Make ‘em be strippers and dancers and such
Mamas, don’t let your babies grow up to be smart girls
They’ll never find men and they’re always alone
Even though men claim they want brains
Smart girls ain’t easy to love and they’re above playing games
And they’d rather read a book than subvert themselves
Kafka, Beethoven and foreign movies
And each night alone with her cat
And they won’t understand her and she won’t die young
She’ll probably just wither away
Mama don’t let your babies grow up to be smart girls
Don’t let them do puzzles and read lots of books
Make ‘em be strippers and dancers and such
Mamas, don’t let your babies grow up to be smart girls
They’ll never find men and they’re always alone
Even though men claim they want brains
A smart girl loves creaky old libraries and lively debates
Exploring the world and art and witty reparteé
Men who don’t know her won’t like her and those who do
Sometimes won’t know how to take her
She’s rarely wrong but in desperation will play dumb
Because men hate that she’s always right
Mama don’t let your babies grow up to be smart girls
Don’t let them do puzzles and read lots of books
Make ‘em be strippers and dancers and such
Mamas, don’t let your babies grow up to be smart girls
They’ll never find men and they’re always alone
Even though men claim they want brains
Life(?) of Trillian
Single/Zero
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
Dear Reed,
I messed up. I owe you an explanation.
It is clear from your email this week that you felt I lacked insight and clarity in the way I announced the separation of my credit card and Netflix and the price changes. That was certainly not my intent, and I offer my sincere apology. Let me explain what I am doing.
For the past two years, my greatest fear has been that I wouldn't make the leap from unemployment to career success. Most people who are great at something – like marketing or design – do not become great at new things people want (overcoming the competition of 14 million+ other unemployed people for me). So I moved quickly into canceling my account, but I should have personally given you a full explanation of why I am canceling your services and thereby decreasing your profit. It wouldn’t have changed the your profit margin, but it would have been the right thing to do.
So here is what I am doing and why.
Many members love your DVD service, as I do, because nearly every movie ever made is published on DVD. DVD is a great option for those of us who want the huge and comprehensive selection of movies.
I also love your streaming service because my laptop and internet connection are the only things I haven’t sold, and I can watch anytime I want, which is nice because I have a lot of sleepless nights what with the joblessness and all. The benefits of your streaming service are really quite different from the benefits of DVD by mail. I need to focus on saving what little money I have for food and shelter, without continuing your DVD by mail service.
As an unemployed marketing professional I realize that streaming and DVD by mail are really becoming two different businesses, with very different cost structures, that need to be marketed differently, but I need to let each go and find ways to entertain myself independently of DVDs and streaming movies.
It’s hard to write this after over 8 years of receiving DVDs with pride, but I think it is necessary: In a few weeks, your renamed DVD by mail service, “Qwikster,” will be moot to me because I will not have a mailbox to receive DVDs or any other type of delivery. I choose the name Givaratsasster because it refers to my sentiments regarding your new mail delivery service name and how little I care what you do with the name “Netflix.”
I really don’t care that Givearatsasster will be the same website and DVD service that everyone is used to. It is just a new name, and people who have jobs with incomes that allow them to rent movies will somehow find a way to carry on and choose movies. And for those people, the improvement you will make at launch to add a video games upgrade option, similar to your upgrade option for Blu-ray, will be nice for the few who can afford a Wii, PS3 and Xbox 360. I’m sure members have been asking for video games for many years, and you have ignored this demographic, but now that DVD by mail has its own team (and the economy is so bad that people are pawning or selling their kids’ game stations), you are finally getting it done. Other improvements will follow. Yay you. The fact that the Qwikster.com and Netflix.com websites will not be integrated is of no significance or consequence to me.
It’s great that there are no pricing changes (and that you’re done with that!) but I cannot afford to subscribe to either service because I have no money to pay a credit card bill, even though the total will be the same as my current charges. Don’t bother to let me know when the Qwikster.com website is up and ready because by that time I will be homeless.
For me the Netflix red envelope has always been a source of joy. I’m glad the new envelope is still that lovely red, because it reminds me of all the red ink in my personal budget and that DVDs are just one more thing I can no longer afford. I know that reality won’t matter over time, but still, it is hard. I imagine it will be similar for many of your other unemployed members.
I want to acknowledge and thank you for the years of fast, affordable entertainment, and to apologize again to you, I’m sorry you felt I treated you thoughtlessly.
It’s nice that both the Qwikster and Netflix teams will work hard to regain my trust but trust isn’t the issue. Joblessness is the financial blight. Money speaks louder than words. And declined credit card transactions help people to understand why millions of unemployed people are canceling their Netlix/Givearatsasster accounts.
Respectfully yours,
-Trillian, former member, Netflix
p.s. I have a slightly shorter explanation: movies are a luxury I can no longer afford - regardless of the viewing format.
