Ha ha! An affectionate joke aimed at my very good friend, whom I've aged by about 10 years, I think ;)
The best joke is perhaps the perplexity the young teen has with "retro" technology!
Can I have some peace and quiet?
-
I am so tired of hearing politics, just let me sit here alone for a
few minutes;
No bashing or criticizing.
Just let me sit here and hear nothing.
...
5 years ago
5 comments:
Hah! You know, I don't even think I have a Walkman around anymore - although I used to have one. I don't have an Ipod though, so I haven't completely modernized. I guess I'm sort of in limbo :)
Eowyn, maybe we could merge this with your other story about the dying MSM; have the BBC hand this 13-year old smart-aleck a daily newspaper, and have him ask the same question:
Does anybody still think of this as "a credible piece of technology"?
I don't know if it's the technology causing the change or the change summoning the technology, but I do notice a disconcerning evolution in how a Walkman tended to be used, compared to how an I-Pod is used today.
In "the old days", it seems to me, we used our Walkmans on solo activities, like when we were jogging, or dog-walking. Now I see groups of people hanging out together and yet still plugged in to their individual I-Pods and mp3 players. They only have one ear-piece in use, so that they can still listen to the rest of the group (usually so that others can tell them what they are listening to on their gizmos).
This is like being invited to someone's home, and they have the tv on, so everyone watches television instead of interacting socially. (Which I increasingly see at many parties nowadays)
As conversation dies out as an art form, the true cost is the skill of listening. And surely no I-Pod technology is worth that price...
In a way, Charles, I think that what you just described could almost be compared to the bugs in the ears of the people in Fahrenheit 451 - constant entertainment at the cost of detachment.
Charles Henry, REALLY. It's astonishing when you think about it, how rapidly technologies are superseding each other.
And, fragmenting humanity from itself. Even online relationships -- such as ours -- seem to be more and more fleeting. (But don't worry; you three, and Walker, and others, are with me to stay -- I've so enjoyed communicating with you, and DO hope to meet you in person at the Atrium one day :)
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