The Lure of Old Tech
It was only a generation or so ago that we were living in an analog world. Writing with pencils, computing with slide rules, using manual typewriters and spirit duplicators for copy, taking dictation with shorthand and steno, television and telephones with simple circuits, listening to the radio with a crystal and a "cat whisker", learning semaphore in boy scouts, creating light with carbide lamps, playing card and board games made from simple materials, etc. Yet we were able to produce nuclear power, go to the moon, make advances in computing, and so on.
Now everything is digital. Yes, pretty much everything. Quick, easy, cheap, and common. But then we worry about power outages, industrial pollution from electronics manufacture, loss of common skills (e.g. penmanship and spelling), dependency on megacorps for supplies and updates, and other concerns. Many of us try to live greener, not just in power consumption, but also in better contact with people and nature. And yet the loss of many of these skills has happened so rapidly that many are having to use the internet to regain the information.
Some individuals have decided to make their households independent of the power grid, either for cost or for preparedness reasons. Having solar panels and generators is a solid step in that direction. But I think it would be complementary and just as helpful to have lower-tech items around (and enough practice to use them). Who knows what kind of manufacturing or distribution crises will interrupt supplies, or what kind of energy tax will make many items cost-prohibitive?
I'm not advocating a sudden, backward change. But I do think that it's a good idea to reconnect with some older versions of stuff we use--stuff that some of us remember as kids. Play some poker around a table. Dust off the Scrabble or Monopoly box. Play the Dictionary game. Try out some candles or lanterns for setting the mood. Improve one's penmanship or calligraphy. Sketch some pictures. Try shorthand as a "human tape-recorder". Learn fire by friction (can only be learned through experience). Talk around a campfire. Learn the ways of the local weather and critters. Tell time by the sun and stars. Try out sailing. Learn to ride horses.
No need to be complete Luddite, but there's something to be said for simple stuff that works. And in the years ahead, it can come in handy.
Now everything is digital. Yes, pretty much everything. Quick, easy, cheap, and common. But then we worry about power outages, industrial pollution from electronics manufacture, loss of common skills (e.g. penmanship and spelling), dependency on megacorps for supplies and updates, and other concerns. Many of us try to live greener, not just in power consumption, but also in better contact with people and nature. And yet the loss of many of these skills has happened so rapidly that many are having to use the internet to regain the information.
Some individuals have decided to make their households independent of the power grid, either for cost or for preparedness reasons. Having solar panels and generators is a solid step in that direction. But I think it would be complementary and just as helpful to have lower-tech items around (and enough practice to use them). Who knows what kind of manufacturing or distribution crises will interrupt supplies, or what kind of energy tax will make many items cost-prohibitive?
I'm not advocating a sudden, backward change. But I do think that it's a good idea to reconnect with some older versions of stuff we use--stuff that some of us remember as kids. Play some poker around a table. Dust off the Scrabble or Monopoly box. Play the Dictionary game. Try out some candles or lanterns for setting the mood. Improve one's penmanship or calligraphy. Sketch some pictures. Try shorthand as a "human tape-recorder". Learn fire by friction (can only be learned through experience). Talk around a campfire. Learn the ways of the local weather and critters. Tell time by the sun and stars. Try out sailing. Learn to ride horses.
No need to be complete Luddite, but there's something to be said for simple stuff that works. And in the years ahead, it can come in handy.