On high up on my shelf in my home office, next to the Internet router, is this device:

It’s a clock – and it’s not set correctly, since I took the picture at 10:00am. It’s a weather forecaster which I don’t know how it works, it’s a thermometer, which I never use since I have a thermostat in the house, and it tells me the humidity, which, in San Diego is pretty non-informative. The comfort level shows a smiley face. I never, ever look at this device. It’s been sitting there for at least a year.

Why do I have it?

I received it as a “free gift” with a magazine subscription. I don’t remember which magazine, so in my mind, the magazine does not get any credit.

The device does something, but the time display is dim, so I never look at it for that. My good old analog clock on the wall is much better for the time. There are a bunch of buttons on the back, but since I don’t have instructions anymore, I would not know how to set the correct time anyway. It seems to have different modes, but so what?

I don’t need this thing.

But it’s working perfectly fine, so I don’t think I should throw it into the trash. That would be a waste

I would be embarrassed about giving it away to anyone, because it’s an electronic white elephant, a piece of junk nobody needs or wants.

Some company in Asia, probably China, is shipping millions of these things to people in the US on behalf of magazine publishers. Recipients don’t need the things, magazines don’t get the credit since people forget, and the Asian company still gets paid – some of our trade deficit sitting on my self – until I find the heart to throw the thing in the trash – where it will be working just fine doing its thing buried in some landfill.

Modern consumer age insanity.