For those who do not take the time to link to it, the article is basically a list of items or activities that folks my age (early 30's) or older are likely to have grown up with but that have gone the way of the dinosaur. Like the vinyl records and and fat polyester ties of an even earlier generation, these things are only cool or remembered as "retro" items or activities. The modern coming of age experience will most likely not incorportate the items on this list.
As I read through it, there are some that I miss and some that make me roll my eyes and mutter "good riddance". The following is a list of some of these items and why I feel that way.
Things I will NOT miss:
- Old music and video techology -- I don't understand the feeling of missing cassette tapes, walkmans, VHS, and even minidiscs (a techology I invested $350 in shortly after I returned from Australia in 2001). Modern MP3, DVD, and iPod are superior in every way. Less bulky, better battery life, more versitility, faster use, better sound/picture, etc. Call me crazy, but I just don't miss fast-forwarding a cassette only to overshoot, then have to rewined only to overshoot again and then have to fast-forward again, ad infinitum. Give me easy iPod navigation and DVD menus!
- Floppy disks -- USB drives are again superior in every way. They hold more data, they are faster, they are easier to transport, they fail less...and subesequently that chemistry assignment will not need to be redone last minute because the disc mysteriously erased itself (curse you 3.5 inch floppy!)
- Road maps/MapQuest -- Few things worse than trying to navigate the freeway system in a large city you have never been in by simultaniously watching the road and by glancing down at a map every 3 seconds. Things got even worse when you missed an exit...nuff said...the inventor of GPS should get the Nobel Peace Prize for how much he/she has decreased my road rage.
- 35mm Film cameras -- I love digital photography. That is all.
Things I WILL miss:
- Encyclopedia sets -- I'm one of those people who think that books look great! My dream house will have a big library with built in book cases, a fireplace and a big comfortable La-Z-Boy chair. As much as I love Wikipedia and use it ALL the time, I miss a nice, large, asthetic, formitable, encyclopedia set that sits on a bookcase and that is your "go to" reference for 4th grade state reports, etc.
- 8 or 16 Bit Nintendo -- Give me the 2-D Super Mario who jumped on mushrooms and Goombas any day. I get sea sick when I try to watch Halo, Modern Warfare or whatever. I'd even take a Sega Genesis over the new Xbox. Remember the old 8-bit Nintendo running pad that came with the Olympics game? Totally smokes the Dance-Dance-Revolution thing!
- Playing outside -- Not only do I miss doing this myself (I feel like I'm inside all the time) but I'm not sure the last time I saw a group of kids playing a pickup game of road hockey.
- Calvin & Hobbs / The Far Side -- The world changed in 1995 when both of these comic strips ended in the same year. You know a comic was good when 15+ years later you still regularly recall them and still find them hillarious.
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