Terri Patrick
Oregon writer
Terri Patrick’s blog
A recent news article stated the I-pad tablet is Only Three Years Old, then the author revealed how the tablet technology has changed his daily routines and the way he interacts with his young children because of all the cool apps and these new technology gadgets. I had to dig deeper to make sure it wasn’t a paid advertisement.
Electronic gadgets have exploded in our daily routines. Stories that built the tension on the technology of the time (pay phone booths) are not connecting with a new audience who have smart phones in their pockets and an entire language of acronyms to use in their text.
The social skill of conversation (the Art of Informal Remarks – from the movie Larry Crowne) is now something to learn in college courses, and there are scientific studies regarding which is more dangerous when driving, texting or daydreaming. (Ed is guilty of one, I’m prone to do the other!)
I’m fascinated to have personally experienced when MA BELL was wonderful and BIG BROTHER was a terror. (I was busy with two toddlers during 1984 and missed that novelistic horror!)
With Weather Apps and Road Maps there’s no longer a reason to get lost or stress over whether the planned picnic or ball game will be rained out. But that also means you’re missing out on wrong turns that could become grand adventures.
There’s an app to know how many registered sex offenders live near grade schools, and one for the wait time for all local restaurants. Both of these apps were discussed as most of my family gathered for a Little League Baseball game. Yet it was that “Wait Time” that made the difference when the game was “Rained Out” in the 2nd inning. No App was used but the choice was made for a trip to the grocery store and a backyard barbecue for a family celebration. We’d all blocked out hours on our schedule that day – and we were all together with time to stay together. My birthday was the reason to turn a rained out event into a family celebration.
Ed gifted me with a bunch of Really Cool Apps on a touch screen tablet. He really liked the App that featured a variety of Fart Sounds. I made him delete it. I know this Fart thing appeals to my husband, son-in-laws, and grandsons, but it’s my new & cool technology tool/toy and I’m all about romances that include cute-meets, women with gumption, men with purpose, and fun fuzzies with The End.
And there wasn’t one App used during that family barbecue. We all interacted the way we always have, with conversation and lots of laughter. Our food was cooked on a grill – with fire. We used knives and utensils to prepare the food, and forks to eat the Boston Cream Cake. We are a technology savvy family and that means we turn it off when its time to eat and enjoy being a family.
Technology has been a benefit to how we do our jobs, and a bonus for how stay in contact with each other and friends-and-family around the globe. But for us it is eye contact and hugs that really matter, and that’s how we interact. No App will ever replace that.
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