I have several milestones coming up in the next month.  In three weeks my mischievous, fun loving baby boy will graduate from high school.  In four weeks, my male mini me will turn 21 and the next day will be my 30th class reunion.  It seems like yesterday that I was graduating from high school.  I can't believe it has been 30 years.  The change in technology from 1985 until now has been unbelievable.
 When I was a little girl, I used to go to my grandma's and grandpa's quite often.  I remember listening to the phone as it rang to see if I should pick it up or if it was for the neighbors.  Some kids today have never even had a land line phone in their homes, let alone a shared line.
When I went through high school my keyboarding class was with a typewriter.  It was not an electric one either.  When I got to use mom's electric typewriter I thought life was good!  Computer class in high school was a programming class where we got to type in numbers and letters and attempt to create some kind of program. Quite honestly, I got nothing out of it but a loathing for computers.  We didn't get to call or text from cell phones.  We had to go to a house or a pay phone to make a call and texting was called writing notes.  I look at where my boys are now and think how things have changed.   I got my first cell phone when I was in my late 30's.  Ian got his first when he was 13 and Cohen was 11.   They have to help me figure out how to work certain programs and how to set things up on my new smart phone.  When I talk about document cameras and LCD projectors, that are fairly new to me, they are able to share how they have used them in journalism and television production in high school.  I am sure my mom and dad and my 98 year old grandpa could look from where they started until now and share many more differences.
I certainly appreciate the convenience of the new technology.  I love being able to get in touch with my boys with the touch of a few buttons.  And, the word document programs on computers are soooo much better than a typewriter.  I appreciate that things are changing but I also hope that children will continue to be taught appropriate face to face social skills as we get into a world where so much communication goes on through electronic devices.