Outdated… me?

Early in the morning of the first day of January, I was in the kitchen putting up my 2021 wall calendar, when I remembered an article that I had recently read about the number of things that would soon become obsolete (if they had not already done so). This is when I realized that, in some respects, I was becoming a somewhat outdated person, even though I believe myself to be a “thoroughly modern” person.

I really love my wall calendar… I look forward to turning the pages at the end of each month and finding the next picture of the various articles involved with one of my favorite beverages: tea.  Not only am I passionate about my tea, I’m also an early riser. I love to come into the kitchen in the beautifully quiet early morning, before anyone else is awake, and while waiting for the water to boil, I examine the details in the picture, reading the text that comes along with it, which happens to be quite interesting most of the time.

However, according to the oracles of modernity, calendars – and especially wall calendars – have nothing more to do in our lives; our telephones are now perfectly capable of telling us what day it is – although I must confess that I have given up my paper daily planner and have adopted the digital one because it is really so convenient! 

Then I started to think about the many other things that I love and that will eventually disappear. Compact discs, for example… I can hear the younger generations jump up and cry out, “That’s what Spotify is for!”. I don’t doubt it… but every morning, when I go to my studio to paint, I find it relaxing to go through my CD’s to decide what kind of music I feel like listening to, and what kind of mood I’m in on each particular day. While going through my music, choosing what it is that I want to listen to, I am also able to think about what I need to do with whatever I’m painting at the time.

The same applies to my DVD’s. Again, I can just imagine the new generations grinding their teeth and pulling their hair out! That’s is what streaming is for!! True again, but I cannot always stream the things I like and that I have in my treasured DVD’s. Museum collections, art history, old series such as “As Time Goes By”, an English series of I don’t know when, which I love to watch from time to time, as if resorting to a favorite comfort blanket, as well as other movies which no self-respecting streaming service would still have. 

I also remember reading that analog watches would soon cease to exist and that all watches and clocks would be digital in the future. That is where I draw the line!! There is no way a digital watch can compare to an analog one!! I happen to love my watches and my clocks!!

Yes, it is true that things are becoming faster and more accurate, but somehow, I feel that we’re losing certain little things that made us take life a little slower, perhaps being a bit less exact, but which gave us a little margin for dreaming and musing. Or is it just me becoming outdated?