Am I really that old? I didn't grow up with horse and buggy or had to walk to a pump to get fresh water. I think about the onset of the technology age and realize how far and fast things have developed. I grew up playing ball in the street and riding my bike around the neighborhood for fun. My family would sit down and watch the three channels on the television set focused by the aluminum foiled rabbit ear antenna. We had one T.V. that sat in our living room.
I remember the day when the cable company rolled their trucks into my neighborhood. The men were stringing the cable lines along side the power lines. We were getting cable! The few cable channels were fascinating! I could watch Australian Rules Football on ESPN. Then, there was this music channel that played our favorite songs all day long.
Next up! My family got our very own Radio Shack Tandy computer. I think we had to type in more codes and characters than a five-page essay. I think back to how basic those games were but yet so riveting. Funny, how we had no idea that the cable line and the personal computer would unite in our homes. How did we ever exist without checking our email or posting on Facebook?
We actually picked up the rotary phone and dialed our friend's number and let the phone ring, and ring, and ring. I remember trying to reason to myself that maybe he was just getting home and walking in the door. I can think back to the times that I would race over to my buddy's house on my 10-speed bike to shoot hoops in his driveway. Now, I would text message him to see where he was and see what his status was.
How many of us remember hearing our parents calling out our names to come in for dinner? I would even push the issue and wait for my dad to bellow out my full name. Which meant that I better get home fast! Fast forward to a neighborhood near you, a parent simply places a cell phone call to his or her child telling them that it's time to come home. Parents can even locate the exact spot where their child is by using the big brother technology. How lucky were we that our parents couldn't do that back then?
It's amazing how long it took for us to get cable, our first family computer, a video game system, a VCR, an answering machine, a microwave oven, a cordless phone, and a remote control. Now, you look at the last six months, or the last year, or even the last three years. Technology seems to be on warped speed. How much memory does your flash drive hold? Are you a 4G yet? Nook or Kindle?
Being a product of the before generation, I can see where technology has come from and am excited about what lies ahead in the future.
