Technology is truly a miraculous thing and with constant advancements it feels impossible to stay up to date.  It was ten years ago that all anyone could talk about was Y2K and the fear of what might happen.  I was a junior in university then.  I remember how absolutely nothing happened.  Computers all worked.  My ATM/ABM card had no trouble, and I probably could still be drinking all of that canned food and bottled water if I had it near me. (I have vague recollections of delivering it to a very pleased food shelf when it was time to move out of the dorm).

Recently, I read a list of the top gadgets of the decade.

Looking over this list I feel somewhat reflective.  I remember those heavy laptops people once lugged around.  The blurry screens of the monitors, when there was no DV-R/PV-R and you had to use a VCR to record things you wanted to watch, wallkmans and then discmans.  I would rather use an ipod everyday, I confess.  I enjoy typing this post on my macbook which utilizes a wireless internet connection and can be used anywhere in my apartment.

I do realize that new technology breeds new technology and innovation in and of itself.  I remember the 80s and believe I even had a pair of neon orange fingerless gloves.  Now of course, they are called ‘texting’ gloves, not fingerless gloves.  I even found these and yes, I want a pair.

It is, of course, frustrating that it seems whenever one purchases an item, within a few weeks there will be something with more memory, lighter weight, and less cost.  My dad recently shared that the software for his sony e-reader is now obsolete and because of this, sony sent him a gift certificate for $50 off his next reader.  Not exactly the best idea for encouraging customer loyalty.  Yes, I do sense a kindle in his future, especially once he sees my sister and I with ours.

Yet, if I had to answer, “if your house was on fire and everyone inside was safe, what would be the one thing you would take?”  The answer, hands down, is photo albums.  This probably means I should have these scanned so that they are preserved in other ways.  More necessary technology!