Hey kids, mom grew up with technology too
In keeping with the Then and Now theme of this week’s newspaper, I’m revisiting a column I wrote a few years ago where I had a conversation with my kids about technology.
Okay, it was an imaginary conversation as I was typing out my column – but the intent was to draw comparisons to the technology they were growing up with compared to how high-tech my childhood was.
Here goes…
My kids have a lot of things that never crossed my mind when I was a kid growing up. Wifi, iPods, Smartphones, texting, MP3s, Xbox Live . . . and on it goes.
It got me to thinking about how I would introduce some of the ‘technology’ from my childhood to my children today. The conversation would go something like this, I suspect.
Me: “Hey kids, how would you like to have a really big tape recorder/AM/FM radio combo with dual speakers?”
My kids: “Why would we need it?”
Me: “It plays music.”
My kids: “Can you download from iTunes?”
Me: “Well, no, you have to use cassettes.”
My kids: “Can pocket?”
Me: “No, but you can carry it by the handle or hold it on your shoulder.”
My kids: “Does it hover there?” Me: “No, you have to hold it there with your arm. Here, let me show you how it works. See, you put the cassette in. Listen to how great the music sounds.”
My kids: “It sounds awful. What’s happening?”
Me: “Oh no! It’s eating the tape!” it fit in our
My kids: “The tape? We thought it was a cassette. Why is all that shiny stuff coming out? It’s all long and crinkly. Why won’t the door open anymore? It’s stuck, like something is jamming it.”
Me: “Okay, forget that. Look, I got you kids a typewriter.”
My kids: “Can we use it to text someone?”
Me: “Well, no, but you can type stuff on it. And it makes a neat click clack sound, and the faster you type the faster the sound.”
My kids: “We made a mistake, where’s the delete button?”
Me: “There’s no delete button. But you can backspace and use this correcting tape to cover up your mistake and then type over it with another letter.”
My kids: “Sounds complicated and is that the same tape from the tape recorder you had because that doesn’t work so good.”
Me: “No, it’s white to match the paper. Forget the tape, here’s some correcting fluid, it comes in a bottle. They call it Liquid Paper.”
My kids: “The bottle wasn’t shut tight, It’s all hard and crusty. Is that how it’s supposed to work?”
Me: “Never mind, just cross out your mistake with a pencil and write over it.”
My kids: “So can we text or email what we typed to our friends?”
Me: “Well, no, but you can give it to them tomorrow, or send it in the mail and they’ll get it in a couple of days.”
My kids: “That’s stupid.”
Me: “Then just call them. Use this phone.”
My kids: “Mom, there’s something wrong with the phone. It doesn’t have any buttons. Where is the touch screen?”
Me: “It’s a rotary phone. Just stick your fingers in the holes where the numbers are and turn it.”
My kids: “We don’t like this. It takes too long. And how come we can hear people talking on the line before it rings?”
Me: “Because it’s a party line.” My kids: “If it’s a party, why weren’t we invited?”
Me: “It’s not that kind of party. Look, I got us a new family computer.”
My kids: “Why is it so huge? How come there’s no connection to Wifi? Where do you put a DVD in?”
Me: “It doesn’t have a place for a DVD but you can insert a floppy disk and copy stuff onto that.”
My kids: “And what do we do with the floppy disk?”
Me: “Well, you can put it in a floppy disk drive somewhere else, I suppose.”
My kids: “Can’t we just watch TV instead? Where’s the remote?”
Me: “Here is it.”
My kids: “Why is the remote connected to the TV with a wire? It won’t reach the couch?”
Me: “Well, you’ll have to get up and walk closer to the TV. Or just stand in the middle of the living room while you’re changing the channels.”
My kids: “Or, we can just push the couch closer to the TV.”
Me: “Hmmm. Why didn’t I ever think of that?”