Our computer seems to have been bitten by a rather nasty virus. Despite tons of anti-virus programs, and firewalls, and more techno-stuff that I can't pronounce and do not understand anyway, the virus persists.
One of the "symptoms" of this lovely little bug is that it'll open up new windows while you are on the web. Unsolicited windows. Usually, this is just annoying. I close the window and get back to whatever I was doing.
Today, just a few short minutes ago, in fact, I was innocently looking up overcast stitching on Google. I'm supposed to sew ribbons on Cici's ballet shoes, which is turning into rather an ordeal based purely on the fact that I am truly, truly challenged when it comes to sewing. But I digress. I was sitting here, trying to figure out what the site meant by "raw edges," and how the heck I was supposed to keep from puncturing the leather of the ballet shoe while making very tiny, zigzag stitches, when a new window popped open. All I could think was, "My eyes! My eyes!!" I had an immediate flashback to 4th grade when my Bluebird troop took a field trip to a pet store and I had my first (and last) run-in with a carnivorous bullfrog--and a certain genre of magazine.
The bullfrog was enormous--hugely fat, as round as a dinner plate. Our troop had arrived just in time to witness his dinner. An employee unceremoniously scooped up a tiny mouse from one cage, and put the mouse, still alive, in the frog's cage. The little thing sat there trembling. Actually trembling! I wasn't a rodent fan by any stretch, but my heart broke. I asked the employee if the frog would just eat him alive like that, and he shrugged his shoulders and said, "Yeah." It was a pretty startling introduction to the dog eat dog, or in this case, bullfrog eat mouse, world.
The mag was in the bathroom--a unisex room with no stalls and one toilet. It was just lying there on a stack of other magazines, and my bored nine-year-old self picked it up and opened it. Right to the center. It wasn't just one picture, but a series of shots...and as I'm quite positive you'd rather I not go into detail, let's just say that this poor, sheltered Bluebird got a quick and immediate education in a few things. (Hey, Mom and Dad! You still there? I bet you never heard THIS story before, huh?) Thoroughly traumatized now, I threw the magazine down. I don't THINK I was permanently scarred, but to this day, I associate a certain multibillion-dollar industry with flesh-eating bullfrogs. (Uh, Mom? Dad? I'm beginning to think this was all your fault--you really should have taught me to NOT pick things up from strange bathroom floors.)
Little-shop-of-horrors memories aside, this whole business has me a little worried. I'm not the only one who uses this computer. More and more, the elementary and middle schools assign homework online. What to do, what to do??? Any ideas, solutions, fixes? Or should I just accept that, like that magazine left laying around the bathroom, these things will happen--and most likely, our kids won't be scarred? I guess, in so many ways and despite our best efforts, our kids' education is out of our hands.
4 comments:
Make sure you have an internet filter on your computer. Keep the computer in a public place. Talk to your kids about it and tell them what to do if a picture comes up (turn off the computer- some porn spam is set up so that if you click exit it opens more and more boxes). And yes, you should be concerned for your kids. Pornography addiction is a HUGE problem (both in and out of the church) and many addicts start from accidental exposure. Aside from any moral issue, the number of wasted work hours and the damage to relationships is huge. The average age for a first exposure to porn is 10. It's sad, but it is a dangerous world.
So, I have a ten-year-old son. Great. computer in a public place--check. talked with the kids about what to do--check. internet filter--? Is this different than a firewall? Is it specific to content?
Also, in rereading my last paragraph, it comes across that I'm naive about the ills of porn. I'm not--but I was exposed completely accidentally. It does happen.
It also comes across that I'm going, "Oh well. That's life." I certainly do want to safeguard my children. Chalk it all up to bad writing.
You're such a good writer. I had to keep reading to find out what happened...LOL!!! Good luck tih that! I think you are doing what you can. The filter is a good idea though!
That's a sad/shocking story in both instances. Pet store workers should be instructed on what NOT to do in front of children.
Also, parents should tell children to NOT touch magazines like that. I had no clue that my kids would be exposed at all, let alone that soon. Wish I had known then. Perhaps I could have said something to help soften the blow.
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