This morning, our perky local weatherman was going on about yesterday’s sunset. “It was spectacular,” he raved, adding, “I hope you all got a chance to check it out on Facebook.”

Correct me if I’m wrong, but I’ve always considered sunsets actual things that happen. Shouldn’t the first and best chance to appreciate them be as they are unfolding in reality, with checking out Facebook as the default option? The weatherman seemed to ignore authentic experience in his rush to embrace digital simulation.

I would have been more freaked out, pondering a bleak and soulless virtual future, but the same reality that includes genuine sunsets also includes my tendency to be overdramatic, plus the fact that it was 5:45 a.m., there was unscripted airtime to fill, and the weatherman is not very bright.