AI Stalker

There are a lot of things in our fast changing world that I simply do not understand and maybe never will.  I grew up, after all, in a age of limited TV channels, no twenty-four hour news and phones that do not do math or connect you to social media. There was no social media. There were no such words as streaming, apps, Starlink, internet, and "cells" were where prisoners lived.  When I ordered something it was by check through a catalog and the USPS.  It took days, sometimes weeks, for the package to be delivered. Master Cards didn't even appear until the late 60"s and at that time the first computers were the size of large rooms.  Now... we never leave home without our small computer phones and somewhat suddenly find ourselves with AI which I find it sort of creepy although ...  I have used it to find things like a valid phone number to reach Amazon or how to disable the spying stuff on my new 24" Smart TV.  That TV, by the way, is referred to as a postage stamp TV by some of my beloved. I find that to be really funny.  Anyway -- back to the point.  Does it bother anyone else that AI just suddenly appeared on your phone, computer and other devices? No one asked for it.  It was just there   -- an uninvited guest lurking everywhere you go.  Further -- you can't get it to leave.  Seriously I hope AI does a better job in driverless cars, translations of important documents, and in training doctors.

Focus on it for a moment. Artificial Intelligence. And to think I used to think that you could just unplug it and go on your merry way.  Now it pops up everywhere -- an unwanted stalker.  I have told it to go away but it doesn't listen well.  Case in point.  The other day it offered a unasked for summary of an email exchange that I had with a friend.  Neither party asked for a summary, but there it was. AI is a bit of a show off but without a soul.  I share it with you now.  AI concluded that:

".... the thread is a casual exchange of personal updates with no outstanding request or required actions."

Actually that email contained a lot of important information and conveyed things  like how people felt about certain situations -- feelings and opinions -- thoughts. Personally I wish AI would go away or come out only when you ask it to.  Like I said - sort of creepy.  For those of you of my vintage -- AI has become the nosey neighbor who made it a habit of listening in on your party line or watched you from behind a curtain. Again  -- sort of creepy. Right? The big difference is that AI lives in your home and is everywhere you go.

Vintage Over Old or Antiquated...

Most of the time I feel well and go about my day with an energy level to which I have become accustomed.  All is relatively easy-peasy until I see something on the floor under the couch or realize that something I need is in the basement. I remember my Mom saying that she felt like she was forty years younger that she actually was  -- at least most of the time. I also remember her saying not to make old lady noises - especially when bending over to pick up something or when getting in and out of a car. She implied, perhaps, that groans and moans put you in the wrong mindset and were annoying to others. 

So what are the reminders that time has flown by and that somehow you are now a part of the elderly generation?  Without stopping to glance in the mirror, take a comfy seat somewhere and recall that party lines were once a part of your life, and that you remember the first day when you could Direct Distance Dial. Then suddenly your phone was no longer attached to a wall and all phones were touch tone.  Then ... like magic ... Operators and payphones disappeared.  Poof!  Remember what it was like seeing TV (with 3 static filled channel options) for the first time and bearing witness to the emergence of cable TV and now subscription streaming services.  From rabbit ears to Internet. From Black and White to color. From The Ed Sullivan Show to Survivor.  Out of breath yet?

Realize also that younger generations smile at the fact that you iron or at least know people who do, balance your checkbook, love to read maps, write out phrases like "by the way", actually know proper grammar, and sometimes use a letter opener to open letters.  Be compassionate toward youth when you see that some are baffled by the mere mention of standard shift vehicles or cursive writing, and have no clue what an S&H Green Stamp is.  Remember that they are a generation who may not understand that you love plastic straws and find paper ones to be soggy, icky and definitely inferior. Know that today's youth may never know what it is like to rock your way out of a snow bank or what it is like to drive without all-weather or snow tires.

I am thinking that my grandkids might give me the blank stare if I were to mention that I once sewed/tailored a "leisure suit" for their grandfather. I also rarely use make up. (I think it clogs my pores and smothers my skin), don't think twice about eating red meat, and still keep my landline for emergency tracking purposes because my county hasn't figured out how to track cell phones yet. I also write letters because I like to stay in touch that way sometimes. I pay in cash whenever I can, and prefer my desktop HP computer to any tablet or phone because -- for one thing -- I can see what I am doing more easily.  I admit it all.

One of my grandkids asked me the other day what that "thing" was on my counter top.  It was an electric can opener that I have to pull out once in a while, because, believe it or not, not all cans have pull tabs. It got me to wondering if they would know what a phone book is/was ... I know I have one somewhere.  Will have to leave it lying around when I know they are coming by. Nana humor....

I have childhood memories of polishing silver and that's why I do not own any. I also read real books, like fake plants in high places like on the tops of my kitchen cabinets where I can't see how dusty they are. I routinely use a day planner, love my VHS and DVD player, know what SPAM tastes like, and think that tattoos belong on Popeye the Sailor Man.

Looking back on this... I am compelled to mention that I prefer the word vintage over words like old or antiquated.  I also must mention that I like my white hair and wrinkles.  I earned every single white strand and every crinkle. I would like to think that most of the wrinkles come from an excess of smiling.  For the most part, it has been an excellent journey. 😊 So much for which to be thankful.  Remember also that anything vintage or antique is valuable. We have been there and done that.  We know "stuff". 

Happy 2024!  May the Force be with you.