Sunday, May 6, 2012

It makes no sense

35 years ago, if someone had told me we'd all be carrying around little phones in our purses, I would have said, "awesome."  And I don't use the word "awesome" lightly.  To think of the convenience of being able to call 911 or emergency road service when you were stranded or in trouble, to dial your friend when you ended up running late to meet her at the movies or a restaurant, and to be able to leave the house never worrying that you were going to miss an important call would indeed have seemed awesome.


But then imagine the person breaking this wonderful news to you also told you that your phone would also (in addition to being a phone) actually have a little typewriter inside it, and you could also use your thumbs to type out messages to people you wanted to communicate with.  Umm, OK, we'd have said, I guess under some limited circumstances that might come in handy.  You could send a message during a time you'd be expected to be off the phone, like in a quiet auditorium or maybe your doctor's waiting room.


They then reveal to you that they are visiting you from the future and can assure you that almost everyone chooses to use the tiny keyboard to type when having a conversation in the future, instead of using the phone feature and just calling the person to talk.


I would think that the future sounded like a very weird place.  And indeed it is.

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