Even a caveman could do it

I remember life without a computer.  It wasn’t that bad.

You talked on the phone more. You typically had an agenda and only called during certain hours. You could call “just to talk,” but only with local people. Anyone you wanted to chat with long-distance got pricey really quick.

You wrote more letters and sent more cards. I remember my mom sending Christmas cards to all her friends. Sometimes, she’d get creative and write about the family’s happenings in a funny prose to xerox off and add to the envelope. Sometimes, she’d write out short messages on all of them. Yes – HAND written messages.  Having a nice pen was a thing.

We physically went places. Whether to work, visit friends, theater, movie, or to the library (the precursor to Google), we got off our duffs and went where we needed to go. There were no virtual tours, streaming movies, or home offices. We actually had to (gulp) interact with people.

We didn’t expect to have everything done at break-neck speed. You planned everything in advance and rarely batted an eye about delays.

We have sacrificed quality for quantity. We had fewer friends, but we were closer.  We didn’t always get to everything we wanted to do, but the experiences we had were richer. We didn’t have as much information at our disposal, but somehow, we did more with the things we knew.

Would I go back to it? Hell no. I’d lose my job 😜 Hopefully,  at some point, humanity will strike a new balance – to use computers just enough to stay efficient while seeking truly enriching, real-world experiences.

We can only hope. 😉