Friday, April 17, 2009

Funny Fridays!

Today's blog post is brought to you by Caroline of New Hope Beading and is sure to give you a giggle!

Like many Moms, I try to monitor which TV programs my children watch. We are, for the most part, a PBS kind of family with a bit of The History Channel thrown in for good measure. Since starting newhopebeading in late February, however, those TV rules have softened just a tad. This was the case one recent Saturday morning when I found myself staring at a stack of jewelry that needed to be photographed, edited and listed, not to mention the custom order that needed to be finished. When my children, ages 6 and 9, asked if they could watch a marathon of this show called The Brady Bunch which, “must be new Mom ‘cause we’ve never heard of it,” I acquiesced. Hey after all, my 4 brothers and sister and I were no worse for wear for watching Greg and Marcia and the gang playing in their Astroturfed backyard.

The kids tucked away in the living room with Jan and Peter, I retreated to my studio (a.k.a. the dinning room) to get some work done. I had not even gotten through the first set of photos when peals of laughter drew me to the living room. Before long I found myself on the couch between the kids answering questions. “Why on Earth had they written In Color under the title of the show and what did that mean Mommy?” My worldly 9 year old had heard that TV had been in black and white “long ago” but surely her mother had not been alive back then. I explained that yes, it was not that long ago that TV was in black and white and that in 1969 color programming would have been a big selling point.

Before I could even think of returning to the photographs my 6 year old had some questions of his own. “What happened to the monitor on Greg’s laptop Mommy and why is the paper coming out the top of his printer?” I spend the next 5 minutes explaining how a typewriter worked. They had heard tell of them. I still don’t think my little guy quite grasped it though because he had the follow-up question of, “Why did Greg put a whole new piece of paper in the printer when he made a mistake? Why didn’t he just backspace over it?”

That mystery solved, I found my job as tour guide through 1970 was not complete for Jan was about to use the telephone, which oddly enough made this strange circular motion when you dialed it. The mysteries continued. “Why were Mr. and Mrs. Brady not able to get a phone call through to Jan just because she was on the phone? Was she simply ignoring her call waiting or was it broken? And why didn’t she simply check the caller ID and see it was her parents calling and take the call? And if the Brady’s call waiting was broken why didn’t Mr. Brady just try Marcia or Greg on their cell lines?”

I could see that I was not getting back to my photographs anytime soon!!! And do you know what? That was just fine. The custom order got done the following day and the photos later that week and I spent the morning with my kids on Memory Lane. As surprised as I was by their questions I was more surprised at myself for not realizing how different their world is than the one I grew up in. The Bradys got me thinking of all the ways the technological world has change.

What things in your children’s lives could they not imagine living without and/or what things from your childhood would they be totally perplexed by? I’d love to hear! Post your answers below in comments and take a moment to view the “groovy” Busy Moms Team creations (just click on the picture). I know any Brady would think these items were “out of sight!”

8 comments:

Lisa M Griffin said...

LOVE IT! I had a typewriter in college and I can only imagine what my kids would say if they saw that. That can't even wrap there heads around life without cell phones, computers, DS systems and blue tooth technology. =)
As for my kids, I think it would be hard for them to go without playing on the Wii - which is why I have to limit their play. Fun post, thanks for sharing.

Rachel Kovaciny said...

I learned to type on a manual typewriter! It wasn't until I was almost in my teens that my mom trusted me with her old electric one. A year or two later, we got our first computer, and the typewriters were relegated to the basement.

I sometimes wish I could transport my life back to the 1940s -- things weren't as "convenient" back then, but I think life may have actually been simpler without all the gadgets and widgets.

Glenda said...

As I read this I was thinking of how all of my favorite songs/artists like Bon Jovi, Madonna, etc. will be golden oldies when my little guy is older!

newhopebeading said...

Hey bijouxdesigns...I think I have a few years on you lol...now we're in the 80's with Madonna...My son likes to ask me if all toys were wooden when I was little or if plastic had been invented then!

Claire said...

I remember learning to type in high school and am amazed that my 11 year old can type so well! We did buy her a cool typewriter at a yard sale, she was fascinated by it and loves to mess around on it. Ding...return! This post is hysterical! Thanks!

SusanItkinBatik said...

I'm a little older, and it reminds me of when my kids were little and I found an old phone in the basement and gave it to them to play with it. They looked at it, baffled - it was a rotary dial phone and they had no idea what to do with it!

I read an article recently that said a lot of the plots of old movies and tv shows wouldn't work anymore because of modern communications - for example - Humphrey Bogart would never have wondered why Ingrid Bergman didn't show up at the train if they had cellphones!

newhopebeading said...

Susanitkin...so true...there is no mystery in life anymore...we are a post-modern world...the world is wired! But it does make life convenient :) sometimes too convenient :(

Amy M said...

funny story! Susanitkin & Newhope you guys are right the world has changed so much! It is too convenient...I find myself lost in technology sometimes and I am not that old! I have to consult with my 13 yr old to understand...especially texting!! LOL She gets irritated at me because I spell everything out! LOL