I know a number of people think that I do not like technology. This would not be true at all. I love the fact that when I get up in the morning my house is warm because we have a furnace, the lights come on because we have electricity, the water runs in the shower because we have plumbing. I like the fact that I can blog and spend time with friends on facebook, and have a website where people can contact me for my business. What I don’t like about technology is just two simple (or perhaps not-so-simple) things:
1. I do not like when technology takes over our lives. I used to be able to change the oil in my own vehicle. Now, because of computer sensors, if I were to do that it would lead to a cascade of things going wrong with the brains of the computer system because I am not a professional mechanic and do not have the device that interfaces between humans and the computer. And “Check Engine” lights are so vague that it might be saying that you are low on oil or it might be saying that your complete transmission system is about to fall out of the bottom of your car. This is also why I prefer analogue speedometers as opposed to digital. All it takes is one fuse going out and you no longer have your digital reading for speed.
Also, when I have people visiting or dining with me, I like us to have HUMAN interaction and not have everyone distracted by their stupid snap chats and tweets and instagrams and whatnot. If I am taking time out of my day to visit with you or to eat with you, bloody well turn your phone off. We do not have to be stupid slaves to texts or anything else.
2. I do not like it when technology FAILS us. This includes a few things. I don’t like when a website is not user friendly. And typically those sites are the ones in which there is NO PHONE NUMBER to contact a HUMAN BEING. Governmental websites are NOTORIOUS for this crap. And then they wonder why citizens get frustrated and angry about having to spend a fortune in time and effort just to get one simple answer. I don’t like the fact that a desktop computer can fry its brains out within 2 years when we can pay over $2000.00 for it. That is a RIP OFF. If I am investing my hard earned money in something, I expect to get at LEAST 5-7 years out of it. This leads to the next one…I do not like the fact that technology actually has a life of its own and seems to be advancing so fast that the $2000.00 computer I bought today is obsolete tomorrow. This frustrates me because it means that even if something doesn’t break down, it will very soon not be able to accept advanced updates so will need to be replaced even though IT IS WORKING JUST FINE. Until it no longer is because it can’t get the updates. And then there are the sites that one goes to that have things hidden behind what is on the screen. Millennials would know how to get to those things and would expect them to be behind there. But the rest of us that are not Millennials are stumped because we actually expect things to function by way of what is being shown to us ON THE SCREEN. And what amazes me is that inevitably when there is a program with this sort of thing, they call it “intuitive”…which does not actually mean “intuitive” at all…it only means that somewhere along the way you have run into similar things and have an inkling that you have to swipe right to get to the next screen. I ran into trouble with this on my own booking system. It had updates that affected how people were able to book me through their cell phones. It was not until I was talking to a tech IN PERSON that it finally, after weeks of struggles, got sorted out that it was the “Location” feature that was the problem. There is only ONE Deerhorn Shamanic Services. I am not a franchise that has several locations around the planet. So when people would run into the location feature they would, of course, not know that they needed to go BEHIND what was being shown on the screen to get to the rest of the booking system. A simple fix was to shut down the “location” feature on my booking system. And believe me, this whole “behind the screen” thing certainly got my cussing out the person about creating something that ONLY Millennials would know how to work. Especially considering that currently my clientele is only just now beginning to include Millennials. Do not get me wrong. It is not that there is an issue with Millennials at all. The issue is with the technology.
Now, I am very cognisant of the fact that to some reading this I may be coming across as an old fart who can’t keep up. But the thing is that technology is SUPPOSED TO MAKE OUR LIVES EASIER…not more difficult or more complicated. And yes, I absolutely LOVE having an online booking system. That saves me time in playing telephone tag with people who want to book in, and it means that I no longer have to worry about hiring a receptionist, which I would not be able to afford anyway. But when something goes very wrong with that system it means that my business is compromised. And it is not just the booking system for which this is a truth. If I don’t have my phone I cannot return calls. If my tech breaks down I am hindered in terms of doing online banking. This list can go on and on. So no, it is not just that I dislike technology. It is that I can see through it and what I see is a world that will eventually not know how to function without it. And then when it all breaks down, which it inevitably will, we will be stuck and not know how to do basic things. Balance a check book? How? Why would I ever need to know this? The bank does it for me online. Plant a garden? Why? There is a grocery store within a block or two of me. Build a fire to stay warm? Um, dude, isn’t that what a furnace is for? Yet every one of these things is vulnerable to collapse…so when I see this I am very grateful for the fact that I am likely one of the youngest pioneers on the planet and actually know how to pump water, chop wood, build fires, grow gardens, cook over an open fire, hunt, gather etc. I know I will be okay. But the rest of the world…not so much.