We recently got a new TV and have been challenged by the workings of the remote control. After two weeks of practice I now know how to turn on and turn off the machine. This week I am going to try and learn how to change channels and turn down the volume.
I am telling you that we have to turn down the pace of technological change. I just mastered the settings of the tri-light lamp and now they expect me to operate a remote control that appears capable of launching a satellite from Cape Canaveral.
Are you as perplexed as I am about the pace of technological advancements? For heaven’s sake, I have to call upon our grandchildren to show me how to reset the clocks after a power outage.
And now what could be the grand finale is looming on the horizon. What type of automobile are you going to buy after reliable old Betsy sitting in the driveway gives up her last piston stroke? The introduction of the electric, hybrid and other automotive power sources I can’t even spell have made this decision more Byzantine.
I don’t know about you but the commercials inviting us to car dealers’ showrooms have not made the decision any more clear. Presumably, these ads were supposed to inform how the vehicle is to best serve our needs. However, I don’t see how showing vehicles racing across the desert, or climbing mountainous terrain, or crossing rivers and overcoming snow drifts higher than the CN Tower satisfies what I should know about the vehicle. I need a vehicle that will reliably and economically transport me to my doctor’s appointments, the drugstore, the grocery and back home again.
I am certain that before I go to the next auto dealership I will request one of my grandchildren to accompany me. I hope not to embarrass them too much for my technological backwardness, but I will need them to translate what the salesperson says.
For instance, I am accustomed to having a key to insert into an ignition starter. Today’s new cars don’t have a key hole. The driver has to have some sort of a fob on their person and find the button to start the engine. Interesting how a fob has come back into fashion. My grandfather had a fob attached to the key chain securing his pocket watch to his vest pocket. Now my grandchildren wear fobs and such devices on their wrists that monitor their health and keep them informed of traffic conditions on the Autobaun, rainfall in the Gobi dessert and other such worldly events.
The salesperson is likely to use words you thought you knew the meaning of but in this new world of technology you are wrong. For instance I thought I knew what bites meant. For instance a mosquito bite. How did I know there was another byte, known as a unit of digital data? I Googled it just to show off my technical competence.
As I drive around I see plenty of gas pumps to refill my gas tank when it gets low. Now I ask you, how many recharging stations do you see when your e-vehicle runs low on juice?
For instance, I worry about the air conditioner, entertainment centre, windshield wipers, and seat warmers draining the battery while driving up the Burlington Skyway and not yet quite reaching the top. Oh, and the power brakes now have no power. Coasting backwards down that slope could be quite dicey if not deadly.
I have read that batteries lose power in cold weather. So l worry about the scenario that I am quite a distance from home and a severe cold front rolls in. Can I make up for this sudden draining of the battery by driving very slowly so I can get home to sleep in my own bed?
If I have too many of these power outages, my friends likely will soon not be answering their phones when my number comes up on their cellphones. Oh well, maybe if I buy a longer extension cord I will be able to get along with this newfangled automobile.
