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Comparisons

 At my age, I can tell all of those old folk's stories, such as a pack of Luckies was 25 cents and gas was 35 cents a gallon. But let's condense the story a little bit. Last week I had a video conversation with my son and another with a friend. My son lives in Barcelona, Spain and my friend, Larry, lives in Lisbon, Portugal.

We made contact without using an operator. I can't remember exactly when we had to place a long-distance call with an operator. But I remember in the nineteen sixties placing local calls with an operator. 

There are no charges for these international calls, and we could have added a third party if we wished. I vaguely remember when Skype was a big thing, but few of us used it. Now we have several choices. WhatsApp,  Facebook, FaceTime,  Messenger and Zoom all have video call features. And I'm sure there's more.

Frankly, technology is getting to be like trying to keep up with the latest music groups. If they win an award or have a hit song, I have to ask my grandchildren who the hell they are. With the latest app, the questions are, do I need it and how does it work?

The world is all a Twitter.

While we are discussing technology, Twitter now belongs to Elon Musk. Musk dug into the seat cushion of his sofa and found enough money to buy the platform. I have a suggestion for all of you. If you feel like I do, quit Twitter and any other social media platform that upsets you. My problem with Twitter was the toxicity of the content.

Two years ago, (tongue in cheek), I gave up Twitter for Lent. I never went back. I didn't cancel my account then, I just never checked it.

 My acid reflux went away. I didn't crack any computer screens because I threw the mouse at it. Most of all, I  still had things to talk about with friends. It's just that I wasn't spitting while I was speaking, nor was I destroying one of those squeeze balls used for channeling frustration.

The next sound you hear is my final click to cancel my Twitter account.

Yesterday was National Cat Day

This is an oil painting, 9 x12, and a total ripoff of a Pastel by Carol Rohde Curley.



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