Monday, July 25, 2016

#MyPostMonday Link-Up--The Week's Best Original Content!

 Exploring One Way Or The Other

With the trending craze and obvious popularity of the new "Poke Mon Go" App, I've been a little dumbfounded by the whole thing. There are things that I can see which are very detrimental to a generation of children, raised on staring down at a phone for inordinate amounts of time. But I just know if I was a kid when this came out, I'd be all over it too! To be given a certain amount of time by my parents to roam freely around a neighborhood, letting the game dictate where the next stop is would be amazingly liberating. But what about all the phone neck injuries from staring down so long, and the accidents that will inevitably happen to the unobservant? It was bad enough for me as a teenager, without Poke Mon! For example, I rode my bike into a road construction hole because it wasn't clearly marked and the sun had gone down. I was fortunate to avoid the rebar protruding out at all angles. I spent a mere two days in the hospital with bruised kidneys. Imagine what I'd be like staring down at a game! 


 I AM being convinced that there are some good take-aways from being a student of this game. For instance, players hunting for fictional creatures are being guided to actual historical sites, even stopping and learning something in the process! It's actually heightening awareness of the history and geography of their neighborhoods. Landmarks and plaques are being visited and read, historical sites are being visited, and popular landmarks become even more popular. Some people are actually putting down their phones for a minute to learn and really explore their cities and towns! 

Many of the Pokestops, in fact most of them, are taken from The "Historical Marker Database", a volunteer-operated site that marks the geographic coordinates of historical landmarks and sites. For instance, practically every Elvis site has a Pokestop located on it. (source)

Since I am someone who loves to explore history and step back into time once in awhile, this game now holds a draw for me! So instead of fighting it, I just might re-awaken the kid in me, risk falling down a manhole or dark abyss, pick out my Poke Mon Go Wardrobe, and start the quest for virtual balls! 
Image - trminatr
                                     
Today is "My Post Monday!" It's all about original content from bloggers who care to share what is on their minds--from Crafts to Camping, Wellness to Wealth, Fashion to Food, and whatever else is on the brain!  I  open up with a post of my own and then follow it up with a linky of the week's top original blog posts! It's all about what the writer thinks, believes, and knows--in other words, they are active, writing blogs. If I happen to find a great original, non-sponsored post, I'll link it up and share it with you here and on Twitter via the #MyPostMonday hashtag!  I can miss some amazing posts, but I don't want to!  So, in addition, if you'd like to link up yourself, you can do that too!  I'll visit your site, comment, promote and publicize! (Affiliate links welcome!)

No comments: