6. The risks and benefits of mediacation

Life is distracting. Death has your full attention. Not Dead lies somewhere in between. Whether you can name more senators than professional athletes or identify deeply with the reality on TV, diversions abound in everyday doing, and they can overwhelm.

Daily Not Dead requires escape, and television, newspapers, the internet and more provide ample outlet for media medication.

Consuming infotainment calms you down and cheers you up after unpleasant days at the office—not to mention hurries along the awkward hours between the end of the workday and bedtime. “Being in the know” also secures your inclusion in friendly conversation. If others must constantly fill you in, your not paying attention can jeopardize their favorable opinion of you.

There are risks, however, to media-induced, nonstop good times and cultural attrition. What if your escape becomes the place you’re always at? What if you need to escape your escape? What might that even look like?

Not easy, is it. Discomfort and ambivalence are common responses to complicated forces. Media soothes and excites but also distracts, sometimes at the expense of what you think you should be accomplishing, even if that something is figuring out what it is.

If this is the case, change your media. If always watching a particular channel, give another one a try. Swap TV for AOL or pick up some movies from the video store. You may even read a magazine. At the first sign of irritation—unrest, fatigue or inordinately disorganized or absent thoughts (“the blahs”)—switch it up. Experimentation will ensure a healthful balance.

If you’re feeling adventurous, exciting new trends can be found in social media where people exactly like you construct unique identities and release creative energies for free.

• Discover what you’re like and dislike.
• Become Not Dead in your Second Life.
• Rant and rate and vote up others’ genius, contributing to collective greatness and force—you, a molecule of water in a massive wave, the thumb in the fist of a giant you helped create.

It forms and informs your attitudes and preferences, bedrocking your beliefs then backing them up with sponsored expertise and high-impact graphics.

This knowledge is not only power, it’s proof:

…And especially to not share it with us.