What's A Book?

Has anyone observed the change in gestures? Years ago my friend was telling a joke and gestured a lady opening her car window by making circular movements with his hand, and the younger generations were totally lost. In their world car windows open by pressing a button.



In the same way, gesturing "using a phone" has evolved from circular movement of turning the dialling disk to pressing buttons of an imaginary machine on the table (all whilst holding the free hand to your ear) to pressing buttons above your palm to nowadays two-thumb acrobatics. And this is just during my humble 48 years of existence

Recently someone at work used an old powerpoint slide illustrating the advancement to digital times with a photo showing hanging phone receivers and a mobile phone. The young ones took a while to get what the oddly shaped plastic things on a corkcscrew wire were. My youngest colleague is 23 and she is opening my eyes to the new world where the occupants were born after something I consider ordinary had already ceased to be in common use. Nice, but scary!

 

I think we tend to move forward without really thinking, its only when some whippersnapper comes along and points out that they dont know what you are on about it starts to make sence.

I still use hand tools at work, to me it was always a sign that you were up to the job and knew what you were doing if you had a big tool kit.

Most these days get by with a blunt chisel and lots of cordless gear.

I think its time I packed up, sometimes I feel like a dinosaur.

 

A colleague told how she had felt very proud with creating an Excel file with all the modcons of cells automatically turning red if deadlines were missed etc. to keep complex Christmas organising under control. For our generation that's extremely modern, replacing scribbled notes in a wall calendar with an Excel file, just think of that!

Then her 10 year old showed her that actually it's easier if you just build a quick app for the job, it even gives you reminders to your phone...

The said colleague is now volunteering in a club teaching coding to young kids. Well done her!

 

On the subject of Excel, I used to have that on my old laptop. But I'd have to pay (again) if I wanted it on the current one. I can access old Excel Office files, but I can't alter or add anything to them and I get an irritating pop-up window, encouraging me to buy the programme.

I use "Open Office" which is almost an exact copy of Excel's and is a free Apaché programme

 

What's a map?

I've got OS Explorer maps with digital downloads for all around where I live, plus all the other areas I regularly visit. The paper maps are gathering dust on a shelf. Some people just download the maps and sell the paper versions.

 

Pete, I believe we need a photo of your large, bulging toolkit.

Naughty shiney, look what you have started. My innocent mind is corrupted! I can never look at an ergonomically shaped screwdriver handle the way I used to.

 

I'm lucky. My grandkids love books. They walked up the street to visit and used tneir old style non medicinal sun screen, parasols I bought them to get here without any excess UV exposure. We played parchisi today. They love the " old fashioned " socialising. Next time I'll show them how to spin the parasols to music and use them to protect themselves from unwanted advances

I bought water colour paint and let them paint the fronts of my greenhouses. Then we wove bracelets from strings.

The oldest granddaughter started back home on a train and I shared a map of the train plus the online map showing the progress of the train's with real time speed for the 20 hour journey.

Next time it's macrame.

It is way too much fun.

About the only thing you can hand a kid that they don't need to speak to you again are computers or tablets or whatever. Unless you make it about friends and family.

Course I use Youtube when they're not here to learn new things to teach them...

My granddaughters have them but they really prefer spending time with Gramz...

 

I remember the days of having to take photocopies of map sections, and mark locations on with a ball point pen (or pencil if raining). Now I can have a tablet in a clear waterproof cover and save precise locations of Orchids, Fungi, Bird/Butterfly sightings, wild Apple trees in woods, mark positions of fish holding features on beaches at low tide, etc., etc., plus it's so easy to share them.

Makes it really easy when out walking and somebody asks for directions, just show them on your phone screen (and they can take of pic of it with their phone).

 

Whenever I have been fortunate to travel, I take a papermap. I write all of the places/sights I've visited and they make lovely keepsakes and also are easy to show my grandkids the places I've visited.

I still have a binder in each of my vehicles with maps to places that I visit or suppliers where I go to pick up orders every few years so I can glance at them to quickly refresh my memory on how to get there. Usually that is enough to get me there without any detours.

I do have a satnav plug in but as with @shiney, I only use it when I'm going someplace totally unfamiliar. I also use the compass on my blackberry. Helped me out tremendously when I was visiting over there and lost my sense of direction.