The fact that we have so many new possibilities with communication, is really fascinating. If my grandparents were still alive, they would probably be amazed by the kinds of technologies I use on a daily/weekly basis. Even though they were born in the same century as me, our lives are completely different. Here are some comparisons and let the games begin.
Round 1: Books/articles/magazines
Grandparents: When my grandfather passed away in 2003, I remember having to help my parents clear out their house. It literally took us a year. There was that much shit in there. But what I found most boggling was the amount of books and magazines we had to dispose of! I think my grandparents had every National Geographic and Readers' Digest ever printed. I couldn't believe that so much paper went to waste. I also was flabbergasted by the number of books in that house too. It was freaking library!
Me: In my bedroom I have a total of zero magazines, zero articles, and maybe two dozen books on my bookshelf. That's it. But I read hundereds of textbooks, novels, magazines and articles every year. How is this possible? The blessed thing we call the internet. I have read this year alone about 28 books. All of them were rented through the library or purchased on Amazon. What's even better? The books rented through the library were eBooks. I haven't set foot in a city library since I was seventeen years old. I do everything online.
Round 2: Communicating long distance
Grandparents: My grandmother would tell me stories of when she was living out of state. How she would have to wait for the post to arrive to know what was going on in her families lives. If she was lucky, she could receive a telegram. A telegram was the fastest form of communication for her when she was my age!
Me: When I go on vacations out of state, I am able to instantly connect with family and friends through various ways. I talk to my parents via telephone calls, I text my sister, I snapchat my friends, and facebook my adventures. I have a best friend that lives in California. We stay in contact by texting, voice calls, and most frequently we "hangout" via Skype.
Once, beofre my grandmother passed, I was caring for her. My best friend wanted to chat. So we started Skyping. As a side note: My grandmother couldn't quite grasp that Jean was real. That it wasn't a recording. She thought I was talking to a movie on my laptop. The questions my grandma asked were hilarious.
I also love that I am able to send my bestfriend links for my wedding planning via text and email. It's amazing.
Round 3: The Results
Alright who has it better? My grandparents, or me? I would vote me. But I am biased. My grandma, before she passed still didn't understand a lot of things about new media. She couldn't grasp the concepts. (Side note: she did have Alzheimer's too). One of my favorite memories about my grandma was when we went to go and see the movie The Chronicles of Narnia. At the end of the movie, my grandma randomly expressed this. "Kari, I still think its just so amazing that they were able to have that lion work alongside those little kids." I responded laughing, "Grandma, did you notice that the lion was talking to the kids?" She answered, "I was curious how that was possible too...." She couldn't grasp the concept of CGI. Yet it's nothing new to me. Its so crazy!
I wouldn't change most of the things that new media brings to my life. I love the convenience and fun that it allows me.
Some of those examples are really funny. I've never really thought anything about CGI. That probably comes from fact that we grew up with animated movies. I'm trying to imagine the scheming that would have to go into work for you to record a movie of your friend with the perfect pauses so you could trick your grandma into thinking you were talking to someone far away. Skyping seems so simple in concept to us, but I can't remember a time when I was unable to communicate with someone quickly from far away.
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