Pitter from Pat
Just text me
What is it about electronics that seem to date us and remind us that we aren’t as young as we used to be?
I don’t know if it is my age or if it’s the way electronics change so dramatically, so quickly…but this thing of texting amazes me.
I was riding with my husband recently in his truck, which sits high, when a young woman driving a low-slung convertible overtook us. To my surprise, not only was she passing us, driving 80 M.P.H. but was texting while doing so. Her thumbs were absolutely flying as fast as her car was driving!
In another situation at an airport, I watched a teenager carry on a conversation with her parents and the airline personnel about their luggage, while texting and not even looking down at the keypad. Gosh, I thought I was cool when I was able to use my thumb to scroll my contact list!
The scenario of the teenager brought an image to my mind of a teacher in a keyboard class trying to teach a group of students who are avid “texters” how to type. Can you image placing your fingers on the home-keys when you are accustomed to using just your thumbs? Actually, they can probably type faster than we who were taught standard keyboarding skills…at least they give the appearance that they can.
A friend asked me recently to text her…I asked her how much time she had. Five minutes after her message, I was still searching for the “w”…to ask her when?
What is it about electronics that seem to date us and remind us that we aren’t as young as we used to be? Just when I become accustomed to any electronic device…it becomes outdated. Then I have to upgrade to either a newer program or risk not being able to communicate with others who have the latest and greatest version. Along with the newest version comes a new look…even though the programs like Word or Excel’s basic functionality are the same…the programmers tend to change the buttons around. Then it’s like learning the program again… where the heck is the “select all” button? You see, I’m still coping with the fact that it requires three remotes just to get our TV to play. Whatever happened to the KISS slogan—Keep It Simple Stupid, and why are we not putting it into practice…worldwide?
Back to this texting thing. I see clips on the news occasionally where young people are “sexting”—sending suggestive photos of themselves or their classmates. And just when I thought things couldn’t get worse. Can you imagine? I would not even text my husband an image like that…for one reason that’s just not me and for the other he would wonder how he got a picture of one of the “Biggest Loser” contestants on his phone! I don’t want to confuse him.
Back in our day, kids that were caught kissing in the hallways were sent immediately to the Principal’s office. There was never any PDA (public display of affection) allowed under the scrutinizing watch of Principal Smith. But, I believe Mr. Smith would probably close his doors and not let anyone in if he had to deal with some of the antics that educators must address today. I know I would.
Any who….I guess I will trade in my computer for a newer one in the next few weeks. This one is about three years old and running very slow. My patience runs thin while waiting for it to power up and perform all the functions that my job requires. I am sure it is slow because of all the “stuff” I have stashed in it….just like when a file cabinet becomes too full, it’s time to get another. The difference though…a file cabinet has one handle and it opens and closes...two functions that I can clearly operate. This other storage unit…now that’s a different story…to begin with they will have changed where the power button is located… and it will be all downhill from there.
Lord help me!
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Patricia Kirby, Editor
Patricia Kirby brings several years of journalism, editing, and publishing experience to Radius magazine. She is a published writer and former co-editor of Hoosier Outdoor magazine, with a distribution throughout the mid-west. Patricia is also a former Editor and Publisher of the Hoosier Topics newspaper, distributed countywide in Putnam County, Indiana, and the Springs Valley Herald, French Lick, Indiana. Her tell it like it is writing style offers humor and a bit of satire in her monthly columns, "Pitter from Pat." She has done extensive traveling, including a month in the Outback of Australia to accompany a study group of Aboriginal tribal music.
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