Curious about life

I have a curious brain, which can be good, especially when it comes to useless trivia, but also sometimes gets me in trouble. In the age of the Internet, I find that I’m curious about life. Here’s what I mean:

  • Do Pen Pals still exist? Back in the day, pen pals were people who regularly wrote to each other, exchanging letters, via the mail. I haven’t heard about Pen Pals in a long time.
  • Door to Door salesman used to sell encyclopedias. You could set up a payment plan and buy one a month. Do printed, bound encyclopedias still exist? I know door-to-door salesman still exist — they seem to come in the evening when my wife and I are trying to sit down to eat and our dog is ready to bite off a leg or two. If they do exist, what do they sell now?
  • When archaeologists travel to Egypt or some other spot on the globe and dig up ancient civilizations, they find what people considered important. What will they find when they dig us up? Will they be able to download our family pics and memories from the cloud? Or will they think we didn’t care about anyone, but ourselves?

Image by Pexels.

  • We’re so smart. We have electric cars, we have robots, we have Artificial Intelligence, but, as I’ve mentioned in the past, I’m still waiting for my very own Star Trek Transporter, the fictional device that converts a person or object into an energy pattern and transports them to where they want to go. I keep hearing how we’re going to amazed with the power of 5G and how the era of 6G with more computing power in our hands and devices will change our lives. I know robots have made improvements, I still wouldn’t mind a Robotic Housekeeper and a Hologram, and smart technology. Where are these conveniences? I’m waiting.
  • Vinyl albums have made a comeback. What’s the next old school thing to make a comeback? Levi’s Jeans? Polaroid cameras? Fanny packs? My son tells me that fanny packs have definitely made a comeback. Really? I think I’ll pass.

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58 thoughts on “Curious about life”

  1. Great post, Brian. So many tantalizing questions. I’ll just reply to a few, although they all made me laugh. Re door-to-door salesmen, except for telco salesmen, at house house they’ve been replaced by robocalls, but of course they’re equally as brilliant at calling when we’re eating. Not that we answer! I love your question about what archeologists will be able to find out about us. Capitalism’s love of planned obsolescence, including the crappy buildings being put up these days, ensures that our footprint will be very small indeed. Except for all the plastic, of course! And I hadn’t realized that fanny packs had gone out of style! 😏😂

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    1. You’re so right Jane. Our footprint will be tiny. How will they learn about us. The cloud? I don’t think so. The crappy buildings won’t be standing anymore. Plastic will be everywhere. They definitely won’t understand our fascination with plastic. Sad. Ha, ha. 🤣😎😎😎😎

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  3. Vinyl didn’t make a comeback because it never went away. Record stores never went away either. We have many in New Jersey. In fact there’s one where you can listen to records before you purchase them. They have stations with headphones. And a back area with a ton of audio stuff for sale. I have a 45-rpm tattoo on my wrist and old people are always like, “OH, I BET YOUNG PEOPLE DON’T KNOW WHAT THAT IS!!!” Well, who do you think are buying records?! YOUNG PEOPLE! The young musicians are putting out vinyl. Vinyl never stopped.

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    1. Yea, it’s been around. My son wishes that he could go back in time and have the vinyl records that my wife and I had as kids. I didn’t have a ton, I had moved onto cassettes and later CDs, but he’s definitely into it. And yes, it definitely seems to still be strong. 😎😎😎😎

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      1. Some of the things you mention I have in my “Going Going Gone” presentation, like the door-to-door salesmen selling Britannica. They were so beautiful and we had both the adult and children’s versions. The problem was, content gets dated quickly.
        As for pen pals, if my handwriting was better, I’d love to have a pen pal. It’s beautiful to get stuff in the mail — cards, notes, anything.

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      2. One question Maryanne: can you really tell the sound difference between vinyl and streaming music? After we got our son a record player, I was tempted to get one for us. My only hesitation is my hearing — not age just have some nerve damage that limits the tones I can pickup. I’m with you on pen pals — my handwriting would probably scare people away. I can’t blame that one on age. It’s always been messy! Ha ha

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      3. I’m not sure about the sound if you have hearing problems. And it would also depend on your stereo system, which in that case I’d say, yes, music sounds better on the stereo than streaming.

        I’ll be your pen pal — we can type letters to each other! Ha-ha! 🙂

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      4. I may have to invest in a good record player now!!!! The comments are stoking my interest!!! My damn hearing — in college I loved U2 and the release of Joshua tree, but had to read the liner notes for the lyrics because Bono’s voice is right in that no-man’s land where I’m not always sure what’s been said! Crazy. Thanks for the info. Bring back pen pals!!! 😂🤣🤣🤣😎

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  4. LOL! I see you’re going down a rabbit hole here Brian. Way too easy to do that with the internet and free time 🙂

    I think a version of Polaroids are back- pretty sure something like that was being marketed to kids not long ago. I love your musings on the big archaeological dig that will happen a million years from now. Just think how archaic our society will appear to whoever finds our stuff.

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    1. I’ve got a few screws loose Melissa. I still love to get mail . . . it’s pretty rare nowadays. Just junk mail and maybe the odd bill or two, but I used to love having a pen pal too. It was so cool to learn about the rest of the world. 🙂 🙂 🙂

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      1. I posted about my handwriting a few years ago. A good friend and coworker calls it Halloween slasher handwriting. I can’t even blame it on getting older. It’s always been like that. Ugh! 🤭🤭😎https://writingfromtheheartwithbrian.com/2018/05/14/a-study-in-penmanship-can-you-read-this-writing/

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    1. Our boring architecture won’t last ten to twenty years, forget about a thousand. Ha, ha. As far as exploring archeological sites . . . that’s definitely a dream of mine. Very cool Maggie. You have to let me know where the best spots are? Sounds like the trip of a lifetime.

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  7. Oh, golly. What WILL the archaeologists of the future find? I dare say too many ‘coffee pods’ that aren’t very eco-friendly. Maybe they’ll think it’s some ritualistic discovery with religious overtones? LOL. (and Hmmmm….maybe so?) What a fun post, Brian. And for me…Levi’s never went out. Maybe it’s just a girl thing but when you find a brand that fits you…finally…you’re a customer for LIFE! 🤣🥰🤣

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    1. Oh, those coffee pods. I agree. What a waste. Oh, I still have my Levis too. My son thought I was cool this summer when he saw that I had a pair in the wash. He was shocked to find them. I didn’t have the heart to tell them that they never left my wardrobe. Yea, dad is cool!!!! Errr, not really. 🤣🤣🤣🤣

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  9. I love me a good fanny pack, but then, it figures, ’cause I’m old enough to remember Ipana toothpaste—and some of us old folks are inclined to get attached to things of the good old days.

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  10. Wow! You have a lot of curiosity. I thought I was doing well, wondering if each new building under construction was finally going to be a Trader Joe’s in our town. Do you worry at all about air traffic collision when everyone gets beamed to their Christmas travel destinations? And hey now, let’s not diss on Fanny packs. Most times I only need my pepper spray, my SPF lip balm and my phone. That is too much for the little pockets they put in women’s clothing and too little for a backpack. Fanny packs really are the perfect day-hike accessory. 😃. Thanks for the fun post!

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    1. Wouldn’t transporter beams make it so much easier though!!!! Think of Thanksgiving travel!!!! Love me some fanny packs. It’s funny how our son thought the fanny pack my wife had twenty years was so uncool. Now . . . he had to steal it when he went back to school. I had to laugh too. My wife constantly makes fun of the lil pockets they put in women’s clothing. She claims it’s a conspiracy between the apparel companies and the purse companies. 🙂 🙂 🙂

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  11. Brian, I like the way you think!

    If you’re at all interested in a Pen Pal, there’s a site called PostCrossing, where you can exchange postcards with people around the world. It’s fun!

    My parents still have their beloved encyclopedia sets from the 90s, which are probably outdated now. And, at least here in Phoenix, the door-to-door salesmen sell solar panel scams.

    Per my trend-following 20-something sister, Polaroids were back “in” 10 years ago, fanny packs and Levi’s are popular now.

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    1. Oh, that’s interesting about PostCrossing. As a kid, pen pals were cool, because you got to learn about the rest of the world. I guess that’s not quite the issue that it was back in the day. Now you just have to open up Google. Yes, my son tells me that fanny packs and Levis are popular again. He also likes vintage t-shirts. I keep telling him that all he needs to do is raid the deep recesses of my drawer to find vintage t-shirts, but my taste supposedly just isn’t cool enough. Ha, ha. he came home this summer with a Paul Simon tour t-shirt that I swear a friend of mine from college had in his drawer. ha, ha.

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      1. That’s so funny!! Dr. Zeus is currently selling his old band shirts from the 90s and people are paying $100 to $600 for 30-year-old shirts… some with holes. It boggles my mind! The vintage stuff is pretty cool, but there’s something neat about plucking something from your parents’ shelf or a thrift store rack… and not paying hundreds of dollars to look cool. 😎😆

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      2. I can not imagine doing that — paying $$$ for a used tShirt!!! I guess I’m just too cheap. 🤭🤭🤭🤭 Of course, as my son is quick to point out, I’m not cool enough to have anything decent in my closet. No old Rolling Stones or Pink Floyd or U2 tshirts! Sadly!!! 😎😎😎

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      3. I know, right?! I’m also way to cheap to ever think of paying so much for “vintage”. While it’s kinda nostalgic, it’s also like discovering you’ve been living atop a gold mine… take advantage of other people’s frivolousness!

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  12. My son was into vinyl in college. My daughter loved polaroids and strung them across her dorm room. I’d like to take a look at the Jetsons to see how many of their inventions we are using today. As for pen pals, I had one I met in summer swim lessons in first or second grade. She gave me two gerbils and she would send a miniature letter from her gerbils to mine along with her letter.

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    1. Oh, that’s too cute. Gerbil snail mail. Ha, ha, love it. Yes, my son is into vinyl right now too. I find it very ironic. I had some vinyl as a kid, but I skipped right over to cassette and CDs. He jokes often that he wishes he had the vinyl albums that my brothers and I had. Classics. Ha, ha.

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      1. I kept my vinyl albums for decades. I had a roommate who asked me to ship them to her in Washington, because they had a beach vacation house with a record player. I sent a bunch and took the rest to the goodwill. The next year, my son got into vinyl!!!

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    1. I still like having a desk calendar! Online just isn’t the same. I keep work things there, but a desk one is more fun. I’m a pen nut, so I love a great fountain pen. Just wish my handwriting was better. It’s not age, my penmanship has always bordered on organized messy! Yes, good to slow down!

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  14. I have a friend who has penpals (kids – sweetest thing).
    Polaroids have made a comeback.
    Like Grace, I enjoy writing in my journal. I have to get some refills for my fountain pen that got hidden away in my move. I also keep promising myself to start letter-writing again.
    Hardover encyclopaedias must be hard to come by nowadays! The way things change so much, it doesn’t seem like such a good investment – I do fondly remember going through my parents’ when I had school projects to do, though.
    Man… if transporters existed, I wouldn’t contemplate whether I want to keep this job and keep dealing with the daily traffic!

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    1. Encyclopedias saved me! At least until I got old enough and my teachers wanted real research. I loved how they spurred on my creativity. I would just skim through one and come away learning something. And yes, I wouldn’t need a transporter now as much as I did a few years ago, but the pain is still fresh. Since the pandemic I’ve been remote … but prior to that I always had an hour commute. It’s a killer.

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      1. You and me, both! I spent hours going over them.
        I had been working close to home since 2012. This is my first return to working in Montreal (I live across a bridge on the south shore). It might be enough for me to look elsewhere, even though I am mostly enjoying what I am doing.
        I loate giving up almost two hours of my day to the commute (I know, that’s not much to some… but it’s a helluva lot more than 10 minutes – there AND back!

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      3. I shudder along with you. I have the choice between three bridges, none of which are fun to cross right now.
        I didn’t mind it back then, either. Now? Since I’ve not had to since 2012…. I’ve lost the joy.

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  15. I can’t wait for the Star Trek holodeck and transporters to be a real thing! And the food replicator. 🙏

    I do wonder about encyclopedia salespeople. There was a charm in them before the age of Google!

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