Back To Basics

I remember the days when I memorized telephone numbers. I remember the days that if I wanted to make a telephone call, I had to pick up the rotary dial phone and manually dial 7 digits to talk to someone. I was extremely happy when my mother upgraded from the rotary dial to the push-button telephone. I also remember the days pre-call waiting and if I called someone's telephone number and they were on the phone, I would get a busy signal which meant that I would just simply have to call back later. I also remember the days when I would call someone and if their phone number stayed busy for too long, I could call the operator to interrupt the call by simply stating that it's an emergency. But, how things have changed . . . some for the better and some for the worst.

Gone are the days of Southern Bell and some of the other telephone companies that I was accustomed to while growing up in the 60s, 70s and 80s. The telephone companies seemed to shift their business and upgraded their services. They operate differently now. I remember when I got my own place, had children, and ordered telephone service for my residence. The telephone company eventually offered a package that included, caller ID, call waiting and three-way calling and I purchased it. If my kids never appreciated anything, they surely enjoyed our upgraded telephone service. They could talk on the phone and not worry about missing a telephone call because they would hear a simple "beep" in their ear when another call came in. They could also connect friends to phone calls already in progress. And I was in shock when they started dialing *67 and *69. and call block. I had never heard of such a thing but my children had - and they used that technology.

Additionally, with the popularity of social media and how it has blossomed more than what many would have ever imagined, the way that we do almost everything has changed dramatically. Many of us are Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn users, among may others, and while they are good communication tools, they should not be the only communication tools that we use. I appreciate timeless communication and social media allows just that but I still do appreciate face-to-face communication as well as picking up the phone to articulate my thoughts, questions and/or concerns when necessary. However, youth today utilize social media so effectively that I am concerned that their social skills are lacking. They have a difficult time expressing themselves personally and are unaware of how to mingle and interact with society. They are great texters and are familiar with every emoticon that there is but they have difficulty in representing themselves face-to-face and this is definitely concerning to me.

I am an owner of two Smart Phones but with the advent of Smart Phones, we've created a not so smart generation. Personally, I know no one's telephone number by memory anymore. I'll be the first to admit that I am guilty of having to refer to my BlackBerry to retrieve a number before I actually place the call. It may be time to just get back to basics.

Smooches . . .