Watching "You've Got Mail", I started to think about the way we communicate. I remember the days of keeping in touch with writing letters and mailing them with a stamp (snail mail), then it evolved into email, which is still around. I had a lot of correspondence with email since the beginning of the Internet. Lately tho, it seems that most of my communications with friends and relatives are thru Facebook. I can't remember the last time I got an email that wasn't trying to sell me something, or scam me out of something. I have phone conversations and text communications on occasion, but most of the contact with friends is thru Facebook. And not always Facebook mail, but posts to each others walls. It's almost as if people have forgotten how to communicate face to face. Sure, it's easier to just leave a post or send a text to get a quick message across, or call and leave a voice mail. But that eliminates an immediate response or reaction on the part of the recipient. This type of communication also leaves the option to the recipient of just totally ignoring the message/post/text and not responding. So you really don't know if they saw/heard it or not.
Back in the day of online chat rooms and IM's, you could get your point across and know that it was seen. There was nothing more rewarding than that chime on AOL when someone sent or answered an IM. I haven't been on AOL in quite a while, not even sure if the people I "knew" on there are still around, or use the same screen-names. I still have my screen-name there, and just might pop on there and see what's happening.
Keeping in touch is good, phones have "apps" that let you access email, instant messaging programs, Facebook, among other methods. Yes, I'm guilty of being connected to Facebook and several email accounts on the Blackberry, and sometimes even connected to Yahoo messenger. It's convenient when away from home and without my laptop or an internet connection. I have even been considering a tablet, or possibly a Kindle or other type of multi-functional wi-fi capable device that will just require a bigger purse to carry it in. I like to read and when we go camping on the weekends I have in the past brought several books with me. If I had one of those devices that let you download books and check email and check Facebook and surf the Internet, it would save a lot of room in the truck, plus my husband could put his books on it also. The only thing holding me back from buying one is the fact that I haven't had that winning lottery ticket yet. Someday, sometime, in the future I'm sure I'll get one, probably when it's out of "style".
Oh well, until I get the new stuff when it's new, I still have my trusty Sony laptop with Windows Vista, and my Blackberry Tour to get me where I want to go. I might be behind the times, but I'm an "oldie but goodie".
