Meet The Normals
![jake-rayson.png](https://www.zdnet.com/a/img/resize/9c0ec531cfd82490185a8a2627df5d2f36791cba/2014/07/22/2a5985bf-1175-11e4-9732-00505685119a/jake-rayson.png?auto=webp&fit=crop&frame=1&height=192&width=192)
Every once in a while I think it healthy to Meet The Normals. These are people who don't know much about computers. They may use one to buy something on eBay, write a letter, send an email, play solitaire. They have no idea what HTML is. Nor CSS. JavaScript, CMS, Web Application Framework, Drupal, Joomla!, PHP, MySQL etc are beyond their realm of experience.
I wonder sometimes what that feels like, not to know what I know. Idle pontification aside, it's also good to meet Normals who do Other Things. This is because it informs what I do.
The week before last I met friends of my parents in the local pub. There was the Bamboo Specialist, the Antiquarian Book Dealers, the Garden Designer and the Organic Shopowner. It was a privilege to be in the midst of such a large amount of knowledge, knowledge that was being liberally exchanged, and all of it Offline, served with refreshing beer.
When I was quizzed about web sites, it made what I do come to life. I tried to explain in terms people could grasp and in ways that could be useful. I actually made a visit the next day to see the Bamboo Specialist and advised him about Search Engine Optimisation and Google Analytics.
Next year I hope to meet some more Normals, this time in workshops, and I hope it's as informative and educational.