What would we do without technology? Read by candlelight, run to the outhouse @ 3am, walk 10 miles to school, uphill, both ways…
I thought of a few more things I’d do without it: I’d feel less old, feel less stupid, and probably spend less money.
Progress is awesome don’t you think? I do, most of the time. I love my computer, I love the mp3 player on my walks, I love that I can give my autistic son a cell phone and feel comfortable enough to let him have a little bit of freedom to walk to Dairy Queen after school. But you know the problem with technology? It’s too darn fast! The speed of technology makes me feel old and stupid and puts a little bit bigger dent in my pocketbook each month.
Did you ever see that commercial where the guy has a brand spanking new computer in the front seat of his car? It’s in a box printed with something like ‘Superfast 5.0 model’ on it. He’s sitting at a stoplight with his arm resting on the box, a smile on his face, obviously impressed with himself that he’s got the latest & greatest. He looks up and there’s a billboard ad for ‘Superfast 6.0 model’ available now. His smile fades. I know how that guy feels.
My cell phone is just about done. It doesn’t hold much of a charge anymore, it’s been dropped a time or two, and I know that I’m eligible for a new one soon, (as long as I commit to another 2 year plan) so I started researching them. One thing I notice right off the bat is that my phone, which was the latest & greatest 2 years ago… is no longer even available. TWO years?!!?! Two years is nothing, unless you’re talking about technologyland. In technologyland, time is like dog years to the nth degree. I think back to my original cell phone. It was probably 1993 or 94. It was the size of a brick, had an 8 inch long black antenna and could only work with the cigarette lighter. Only fifteen years ago. Apparently fifteen years in technologyland is the equivalent of finding a frozen woolly mammoth buried in an ancient lake in human years. As I think about this, technology starts to make me feel old.
Soon my boys come in and want to look up online (and also try to have me purchase for them) the next RockBand video game. (ours is less than 4 months old) I keep hearing about the next Wii system (ours is 9 months old) and the next Xbox system (again, 9 months old) and that’s just the video games. There’s computer stuff, cell phone stuff, DVD, Blu-Ray, podcasts, downloadable audiobooks, computer chips in your refrigerator, spoken directions in your car, the list goes on & on. Christmas is around the corner, so here comes the pocketbook. I get online and start investigating when BAM—feelings of stupidity have now arrived. Do I need this generation or that generation? Is it backwards compatible? Can I get online via my wireless connect card or just use a hotspot at Starbucks? (are these things different?) Do I have a VPN or firewall? (umm..what?) Can I check my email on that phone or get mobile TV? Do I need mobile TV? Probably not, but it’s so cool!
AARRRrrgh--- too much technology too fast!!!!!!!
But then again, look at me. I’m blogging. I certainly couldn’t put this out there in the infinite walls of cyberspace with paper and pen could I? I guess I’ll just try to keep up, not be afraid to jump in & learn and one day when it’s all too much for me to handle, hopefully my kids will be able (more like willing) to teach me a thing or two.
