the old days

We live in a modern world and I don't like it. I'm a nanna at heart, I'm old fashioned and want to go back a few years. Seriously. I don't like this world where people talk via a text message or an instant message on the computer - whats wrong with a good old heart to heart? When did the world become so digital, where precious firsts are captured in a grainy iphone photo rather than a proper camera? What happened to photo walls? And baby/photo albums where you could flick through and relive your childhood, laughing at the fashions and hairstyles of days gone by? And what the hell is up with grandparents meeting their grandkids for the first time over a video chat rather than outside the delivery room? Pay the bloody airfare and fly to meet your grandkids, be there to support your kids as they become parents, do whatever it takes.

My nieces and nephews can kick my ass when it comes to technology. Watching them swipe their iphones and tablets at great speed and with such ease, I feel like I am 80, not 32. My youngest nephew (3) can work his mums phone a shit load better than I can. The older generation are even in on the technology take over of the world as evidenced by the texts I get - you know the ones you have to read 5 times to understand the abbreviation and text-speak. I must be getting old if my Step Mum can speak better text jargon than I can. I miss the days of letter and postcards, birthday cards and invitations in the post. Facebook invites are more common these days but every event I dig my heels in and have proper invites done. Am I old? Yes. Do I mind? No.

My poor kids are deprived and wouldn't have a clue about using my iphone, although I did catch them watching ABC4Kids on it one day - no idea how they did that! I'm trying to keep them young, I want them to stay babies while they are babies. Maybe I am disadvantaging them by doing so, but I believe they have plenty of time to catch up with technology. By the time they need it there will be something new out anyway. My kids are dressed as kids, I refuse to let my girls wear anything too revealing as again, they have plenty of years to rock a mini or knee high boots. And plenty of years to argue with me about how they're not leaving the house dressed like that and while they live under my roof they will live by my rules. (I can so hear my Mum's voice right now!)

I believe good grammar is basic, and key to not only surviving but getting ahead in life, or at least until you can afford a PA to rewrite everything for you. Ever seen a CEO announcement with typos or grammar errors? Some messages I receive I really, really have to think to translate them and understand them. It shouldn't be that hard to read a simple message on a facebook page. What happened to punctuation? I was taught to write how I would speak. If you read a long sentence or paragraph without pausing or stopping, taking a breath, then you are missing a few commas and fullstops. Perhaps that paragraph should actually be a few sentences and not one big long sentence. Online or hand written, the same principles apply. Words being used in the wrong place at the wrong time, I have to admit this really distresses me. If someone is always on time they are known for their punctuality, not their punctuation. And don't even get me started on the whole their/there debarkle. It's not that hard!! Maybe people should get back to basics and do courses on spelling and grammer, talk to people face to face rather than texting or chatting online, and teach our kids their ABC's rather than apple vs samsung.