Simplify?

Through a glass darkly

Another spindoctor word. My sister used it yesterday. She wants to simplify her life. But unlike declutter I don't know that we have any control over simplification. Unless we commit murder, plead guilty and upon entering an ultimate "long care facility" with bars do something to get us thrown into solitary confinement with no hope of release.

Life generally is just messy. Let's take just passwords for those various techno machines designed to make our lives simpler. I once had this grand scheme for passwords. They came in two basic styles. I used the forbidden pet names for social media sites, and variations on a favorite author's name for ones demanding more security and then if I had to use other than letters substituted a letter with a number. Then suddenly I had to reset a password with one at least 8 characters long using upper and lower case letters and at least one number and a symbol (@#$&*or + but never (){} or []). At that point I went to the dreaded notebook to remember my fanciful creations.

And speaking of techno machines I began with a desktop computer, added a laptop and then a tablet. Sitting on my coffee table (too full of books to hold a coffee mug) is a Firestick which promises to simplify my TV streaming by bypassing the BluRay player (which will have to be plugged in when I want to watch CD's). Sort of afraid to open the box. 

The modem/router for my board band fiber optic service may have simplified my life (if someone would come up with one word or acronym to use) except that my photographic printer does not communicate with it even though it says it should. And to get photos from camera to desktop to laptop to tablet I am learning to use dropbox (maybe) but if I delete the tablet from the equation a jump drive just seems easier. Be nice if tablets had USB ports for jump drives. 

Would be nice if I could afford a computer guy to come in and make all the machines play nice with each other. So I took a part time job which required I fill out a time sheet and scan it in to email it to those writing checks (electronic deposit into bank but they still send a check I cannot cash). But now they have given me another tablet (cannot use mine), with another password (another set of requirements for said password) to record my hours on. To make a long story short it evidently reads imaginary characters on the log in like when you backspace to delete a letter you didn't mean to hit. I am constantly calling to have it unlocked. And so when it is not unlocked promptly there is a Time Correction/Adjustment Form for each and every day to be filled out and submitted electronically (scan and email or FAX). All this to cut down paper and transmission costs and simply the process so it stops abuse and fraud. I currently have four such sheets to fill out and FAX this morning.

Thinking fondly of that solitary cell in a maximum security facility. Wonder if it requires a password. How about IQuit? Oops, no number.