Friday, June 5, 2015

The First Day...

It all started with Pong. 

Then we had Video Arcades, complete with Skee Ball, Asteroids, Ms. Pac Man, pinball machines, etc. Then came Chuck E. Cheese with the giant mouse and all the games you could play, all the pizza you could eat, all the soda you could drink. Our kids always had fun there, especially when playing the two seater Indy race game! 

Then came Play Station which invaded all of our homes. By the time XBox and Nintendo Wi were introduced, the Arcades were all passe. The kids could now play better games at home on the couch in front of the TV without having to go somewhere else to play the games which cost money, and it kept the kids at home, where they were safe. This made it easier on Mom's and Dad's who both worked and had kids coming home from school after 3 pm.  

Today, our phones aren't just phones. They are tiny little hand held computers! You can send email, play games, do spreadsheets, write a blog post, use it as a flashlight in the dark, take pictures of beautiful landscapes or photos of your family and then text or email the photo to family and friends, or upload it to FaceBook, Twitter, Instagram, etc., to share with them online. You can do so much from your cell phone these days, I don't understand why they're still calling them "cell phones."  

I remember in the 7o's or 80's when they tried to make watches that you could watch TV on? That idea totally bombed, but due to advances in nano-technology, the new Apple iWatch (is that what it's called? lol), tells you your heart rate and it can tell you how many calories you've burned during your work out. You can play music while you run, (which I don't recommend ladies! You need to be aware of your surroundings at all times, so leave one ear bud out please? To be safe?). The newest smart phones have Siri  or Skyvi, which is what I have. The app becomes your personal assistant reminding you of things and then answering questions for you, like where the closest beach is, etc. It's a pretty cool gadget to have! This is part of the explosion of knowledge that the bible speaks of in Daniel 12:4. It specifically says that "knowledge will increase in the last days", and hello, here it is! 

We have all kinds of devices now. PC's Mac Books, iPods, iPads, Kindle Fire and others. I own an Asus EEPad Tablet. It runs off of wireless only, so I don't need a data plan to use it. It automatically recognizes the wi-fi wherever it's free, so it hooks right up. People are now able to go to any major network, NBC, CBS, ABC, etc., online from their tablets and smart phones, along with their ear buds, to catch up on their favorite shows. When I was a kid, there was no internet, and there was also no TIVO'S, CD'S, DVR'S, DVD Players, Cable TV, on demand for just $3.99, we didn't have any of it! And now? I can't imagine my life without my cell phone! I just got a new smart phone due to some sort of failure? It couldn't read my SIM card all of a sudden, so I had to send it back. They sent me a replacement phone that has all sorts of things on it that my other phone didn't have. I can actually use my phone to turn my TV on and off, mute the sound, etc. SAY WHAT? That's right! I can't get my AT&T remote to turn off my TV, so now I use the phone to turn it off! The screen saver thing they have is kind of cool, but it's still a waste of electricity to leave it on all the time. (Really glad I got this new phone! It's pretty darn awesome!).

It really is amazing all the conveniences we have today that we didn't have just yesterday isn't it? None of these things existed when I was a kid, so this is indeed an information/technology age and it's growing ever larger. 

My first record player was in a square box, that was very pink, flowery and pretty. You flipped what was a suitcase latch and it opened up. You could play 45's or 33 LP's on it. Now, the kids have a million and one songs on their iPods, or their iPads or their iPhones, or even their Android devices. And if they lose their phone? It's backed up on the cloud, don't ya know, so nothing is ever really lost and there is a safety net! There is a way to find the phone if it gets stolen!

In Jr. High I graduated to a different stereo. It had a build in tuner with a record player. Then, in high school, I got a great stereo for Christmas. I had the tuner, equalizer, huge speakers, a turn table and a cassette player. I got them out of the box and then proceeded to go into the back yard where we had some left over bricks. My step dad helped with the planks that we sat on top of two bricks, then stacked two more on top of the wood, and placed another plank on top of them. Back in the late 70's everyone had their stereo's set up that way. It was grunge decorative! But now? The kids stream music on Pandora, iHeart Radio, satellite radio or they can use their phones and put them in a special kind of holder, that wirelessly connects the sound on the phone to the wireless stereo speaker that you can buy separately at your cell phone store. They may be small, but they are very powerful and very loud!

My daughter has one that is pink and seriously? The phone, and the stereo speaker? Barbie like creepy? Right? And if they have a CD they want to add to their que, they just have to add it to their iTunes on their computers and then sync it to their phones! Once you learn how, you just kinda go, "Okay, I can do this!" 

Things are moving very fast with technology and biblical scholars are also warning of prophecies that are coming true, every day in some cases. If you really think about it, as we watch what is going on in the Middle East, we should bend our knee and kiss the ground the proud men and women of our military fight to protect, every day. I am very grateful that God saw fit to allow me to be born in a land of freedom, such as this experiment known as America. These freedom's come from God and they are timeless as our founders stated emphatically in the Declaration of Independence. 

So yeah, I've aged. Things have changed. A lot! And even though I feel like a watch that's taken a licken and just kept tickin? I don't let it get to me. I just keep looking ahead, like Paul said we should. 

So, what should I do? I gotta do something, so here goes nothin, It's day one of the rest of my life! And I'm going to try to really enjoy every minute I have left! Every day will be "Day One," from now on! No more pity parties or looking over my shoulder. I've been forgiven! I am
free!


Thank you Jesus!

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