Friday, September 02, 2005

The View From the Top of Maslow's Pyramid

Haven't posted much this week because, really, things with me feel small and frivolous compared to the trauma and privation unfolding on the Gulf Coast.

I'm trying to choose between writing projects, not figuring out which of my family members will get the last of the fresh water. Or fighting off armed gangs stealing the medicine right out of my hospital. Or, say, dying in the street.

Unlike post-September 11, there's no pride to be had in going to a movie or out to dinner with the rationale that if we don't, the hurricane will have won. I hate vague, unactionable guilt. The best we can do is help however we can and live our lives, I guess.

I worked on an online game that launched late summer of 2001. September 11 happened, and, given the particular mechanics and storyline of the title, the company made the decision to suspend the game for a week out of respect for the victims, survivors, and rescuers.

Our subscriber numbers never regained the momentum lost from that week, and this ended up being one factor in the game's being shut down.

I still think that one week was the right decision.

1 comment:

Scott the Reader said...

Keep your chin up, and keep writing. Sometimes it's the only way to keep sane.