REMEMBER

I love it. I don't have to make a trip to a store to get most of the things I buy. YouTube has instructional videos for almost anything you want to do and I can use my phone or my laptop to cast the videos to my TV and watch them in HD.

 

Every once in awhile, I wonder what consequences will result from "convenience". I think the more we become home bound, the less human we become. Hand-written letters convey an amazing amount of robust detail and feelings....text messages barely rise to the level of readable English. Kids relate more to a screen than a human face.

Just some things that I think about.

 

Some people can express their thoughts well and some can't. You can say the same thing in an email as you can in a hand written letter and you don't have to kill any trees in the process. Technology always brings about changes in human behavior. The automobile, the airplane, telephones before the internet, etc.

If being human means I have to trive though traffic to visit a brick and mortar store and then stand in a checkout line to pay for what I want you can have it. I can remember when I always had to carry quarters around in case I wanted to use a pay phone that had touched God knows who's filthy ear.

You're a smart lady. Use what is useful to you and don't use what you find idiotic.

Gotta go. Beam me up Scotty.

 

My girls used YouTube to learn how to sew their ribbons on ballet pointe shoes.

My senior used it to figure out how to tie her drill team belt...thank you, Kilgore College Rangerettes.

My younger daughter has watched every documentary made about Pompeii.

 

Hmm

 

I get that some people struggle to express themselves and yet that has been a constant in human development across centuries so it's not relevant to what I was saying IMO. And frankly, no, you cannot "say" the same thing in electronic communication that you can in hand-writing. ALL e-comms look identical, we all use the same basic fonts. Humans have their own unique, identifying writing style. When you read an e-comm, it's devoid of feeling or effort for the most part. A hand-written communication is full of thought, emotion, effort. It's a sign of respect that someone took the time to write a note. Who here saves emails unless it's to protect yourself from a lawsuit or nutty co-worker? Conversely, people save letters because they have sentimental and historical value.

Not all technology advancement is bad and that's obvious. However, I'm talking about the type of reliance that keeps people in their homes far too often and away from basic human interaction. I may be in SoCal but I live in a modest city and it takes all of 5-6 minutes to get to the nearest grocery or retail store. I wait in line every now and then but I see neighbors and friends and strike up simple conversation with people I don't know. I think that's a good thing. My neighbor has 2 kids, both under the age of 5. They get everything delivered....from pet food to diapers to human food.....she never leaves the facking house for anything! Her kids are never playing in the yard and it seems to me they are just homebound for no reason other than convenience. It's their life but damn, boring AF.

Humans are becoming less adept at face to face interaction, are not held to a standard of honesty as a result, and seem less willing to take responsibility for their actions. If you can just text or email, you can be full of shit and who would know?

 

If I wrote you a letter you would have a hard time reading it. My handwriting is that bad.

 

That could be true but I'd prefer the hand written note. It's truly a sign of respect and has much more value. Email/text is flat, easy to misinterpret, and not all that special.

 

Thank you notes must be hand written, in cursive.