Musings: Making most of an old story
We did research in libraries instead of with search engines, a reader of the older generation writes. Credit: AP/Harkim Wright Sr.
I am 84 years old and, along with my circle of senior friends, we are often labeled “the elderly.” I feel that description misses the bigger picture.
We grew up with rotary phones, black and white TVs, and handwritten letters. There was no internet, no smartphones, and the only thing that went “viral” was the flu.
We played outside until the streetlights came on, did research in libraries instead of with search engines, and listened to records and cassette tapes that loved to tangle at the worst possible moments.
Our notebooks were filled with notes copied from chalkboards, and if you wanted information, you carried home books.
Yet we watched humans land on the moon, saw the birth of personal computers, and somehow figured out how to make video calls.
So yes, we may walk a little slower today. But remember this: We grew up completely analog and still managed to adapt to a fully digital world.
Not bad for a bunch of “elderly” folks.
— Martin Blumberg, Melville
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