I remember, back in the day, being given a math problem in class. Our 2nd grade teacher wanted us to figure up how old we would be at the turn of the century (2000). This was in the days of not using calculators in class. I got busy figuring it up, and whoa! I'd be 44 when that momentous event happened. 44! I'd be so old, why I might not even be alive in 2000.I had a lot of living to do before then. After all, it took forever and a day to reach my 7th birthday.
It makes me chuckle now to think of my mind-set then. 44 seemed impossibly old to a 7 year old. Now, I realize a 40 year old is only getting started. 50 is the new 30, you know ...
Amid all the hub-bub of Y2K, the turn of the century did arrive, and guess what? The world still turned and I was still here. What a surprise!
No, my life did not look in any way what I envisioned as a child. Paul McCartney never accidentally met me and swept me off my feet. The government never did (as of this date, anyway) contact me and ask me to get into the "spy game" for them... I wasn't even rich and famous! But, life HAD really changed since those innocent years of the sixties. Ideas of the internet, cell phones and microwaves certainly never would have occurred to me then. (To this day, I still find a FAX machine a marvel. How can a telephone device make a copy of a page and seconds later a FAX anywhere in the world can print out a copy of the same page?)
When I was a kid, I used to imagine what George Washington or Abraham Lincoln would think if they could come back to life and see how the world has changed. Now I believe if they could view 2014 and see not just our technology, but the way culture, government and ideas have changed so drastically, they would be very surprised indeed. Surprised, yes! Pleased? I don't think so ...
This post was written in response to Writer's Workshop prompt 4.) Write a blog post inspired by the word: surprise. I chose this one because I'm surprised I'm still here. For more fun responses, head over to Kat's blog link-up at Mama's Losin' It.
I think we were all surprised to be here with the Y2K scare!
ReplyDeleteYeah, it makes me wonder, too, would our founding fathers be pleased with the way things are going in the country? I'm with you... I think not so much.
Now it's up to us as individuals and as families to protect the freedoms that are slipping away. I enjoyed your post.
I understand what you are saying about the FAX machine technology. That has always fascinated me also. When our daughter and family lived out of the country FAX-ing was the cheapest way of communicating. So even though I didn't understand how it worked, I was very thankful for it. :)
ReplyDeleteI think our founding fathers would be very surprised by how things turned out here in more ways that one! I'm a year younger than you; I remember so much about the hype of Y2K, LOL, but what I don't remember is how fast the time has gone since then! Fourteen years, where did it go?
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Ack. I'm dreading turning 40 some years from now. I've even calculated how old the kids will be by then, and what if I have another one, then how old will that one be? Will I have more kids after 40? Then when I'm 50 the youngest kid will only be 10! AHH! I will have no personal life forever! I had my first kid at 24, so I can say I have never really "lived" my own life at all. Can you understand my concerns? :D
ReplyDeleteOh, wow, Y2K - that was something, wasn't it? I turned 30 in 2000 and that seems awfully long ago. But from where I sit today, 44 isn't so old! Had to laugh at "50 is the new 30" - I say that all the time!
ReplyDeleteI was chuckling as I read! I'm sure now all little girls of our era had much the same thoughts and dreams. Oh to be 7 and so innocent again.
ReplyDeleteI did that exact thing...figuring out how old I'd be!!! Maybe we had the same teacher! LOL Yep, Elvis didn't sweep me off my feet either~ LOL Thanks for the memories~ hugs~
ReplyDeletemy husband, a computer software engineer, laughed his butt off over the whole Y2K scare.....he said people were just nuts...LOL...we had friends stockpiling groceries, etc. He just laughed and shook his head....ah...I so remember thinking it was NOT a big deal because only GOD knows when the end of the world is...and yup....life certainly is different from when I was a teen in the 1970s....some changes are good and some...like political...not so good, huh? great post!!
ReplyDeleteoh and a note to Janice from above....oh my dear...you CAN have a personal life...come visit my blog to learn how :) I have a 21 yr old now and had her at age 33...i have a 15 yr old and had HER at age 39. I am now 54 and life has been awesome. I was SOOOO not ready to have children at age 24....I was starting grad school and a career and ministry in church....oh my...busy days...to have a personal life you need to MAKE TIME for your self each and every day...even if just 10 minutes. EVERY woman needs it. YOu go for it!!
ReplyDeleteJerralea - I literally laughed as I read your post! It was like I wrote it. I remember when I thought 30 was ancient. And yes, I expected Paul McCartney to fall hopelessly in love with me and want to marry me. I too am fascinated with FAX machines and what they can do. And lastly - I used to imagine George Washington coming to my time and what he would think. Riding in a car...using a telephone - he would have not known what to think! Have a great weekend!
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