Sat around the table at my better half's parents recently, my dear wife and our three children were very busy talking......but in complete silence.
All 4 were on their mobile phones or iphones, texting, facebooking or whatever modern day equivalent of good old fashioned conversation they wanted to use.
Having spent some time earlier on this year doing some family tree research on the 1911 census, I wondered what my grandparents would have made of this modern digital era.
At the 1911 census, my maternal grandparents were 8, my paternal grandfather was 4 and my paternal grandmother was just a couple of months old.
15 years before John Logie Baird's demonstartion of moving picture tv, this was an age so very very far from the multi channel cable or satelite tv that we know and love (or maybe hate) that we have today. What would my grandparents think of multi-channel TV with the packaging that comes with it ? How would my children deal with just the 3 or 4 channels we grew up with ? When the BBC closed down at midnight with the national anthem ? The only viewing on TV in the early hours was good old fashioned ceefax pages.
As much as technology is what my job is all about, I am still old fashioned in some ways. I may love facebook and enjoy the quality of SKYPE conversations to family in Australia. However, nothing better than an evening playing Monopoly or burying myself in a good book.
I've always enjoyed reading from a very young age and have many books which have been re-read many many times. Currently going through a True Crime phase (currently reading a book on Jack the Ripper and having just read Beyond Belief, about Ian Huntley). As I look at my bookshelf, I have covered World War 1 & 2, local history (Stockport, Colne, Crew & Nantwich and Cloughton near Scarborough), I then move on to family history books. On the landing upstairs, I have a small bookshelf with Star Trek novels and a collection of Dr Who novels collected during my childhood.
I do have a sense of achievement in that all three of our children read and between them, have a good collection of books and enjoy their own taste in what they read.
Recently, my dear wife wanted a new wardrobe; however, the one she wanted from IKEA had full length door mirrors. Now, for some reason, I hate big mirrors. But I was able to use this to my advantage; Bec got her new wardrobe with full length door mirrors and I got a new set of book shelves for the bedroom and out came lots of books we had stored underneath the stairs.
Technology is indeed a wonderful thing in all it's many formats. Our grandparents would be amazed at the internet (for all it's good & bad uses), the ability to make a 'video phone call' half way around the world and have several people hold a video conversation as if we were in adjacent rooms.
The car, in 1911, was barely 26 years old. And now, we have cars that have lifetime warranties; cruise control, cars that can self park, cars with far more computing power than put man on the moon and service intervals of 20,000 miles. I remember when I started work back in 1980, working at a Citroen garage in Cheadle, oil changes were every 5000 miles. My present car, a VW Golf, even tells me when it needs a service.
Life has indeed changed and in many ways, for the better.Science and technology has greatly contributed to this.
The Kindle allows you to carry a library in your pocket. The internet grants instant access to great sources of information that once would have meant hours of research in a library. Indeed, I have made great use of the internet in researching my own family history.
Entertainment is so easy to obtain in this digital age via computers, tv, and phones, iphones, ipods, ipads, etc. But, occasionally, just occasionally, let's not forget good old fashioned stuff.
Close friends and family know of my extreme liking for monopoly in many different variants. From a 1960's version to Star Trek and Dr Who monopoly and a couple with a sporting variety, namely the Olympics version and one with a FIFA 2006 theme. Many a happy hour playing this wonderful game around the kitchen table, starting at 7:30pm and many times not completing till 1in the morning.
In this last week, we had a games evening at Church; no electrical or electronic games allowed; just good old fashioned games such as monopoly, dominoes, jenga, etc. A good time was had by all.
So, to finish, technology is indeed a wonderful thing - but let's not forget good old fashioned tried & tested stuff; real conversation where people make eye contact and speak words; books; board games; and maybe, just maybe, sit down and write someone a good old fashioned letter !
