FOR THE LOVE OF GADGETS!

(Picture courtesy of http://tech.co)

Gadgets, don’t we love ‘em? But how many of us realise when buying the phone, the ipad, and the camera, just how much charging up we have to do. The other day I did a count:

Three house phones

Two mobile phones

Two computers

Three cameras

Two iPads

One Kindle

One DVD player

One electric shaver

Battery charger

That’s an awful lot of charging to do at the end of the day

Everything else, apart from one item, is either plug in-electricity or battery:

Four radios

Cool air fan

Washing Machine

Dishwasher

Can opener

Cooker

Microwave

Radio alarm

Two printers

Broadband unit

Remote disc drive

Four clocks

Two fridges

One freezer

Electric iron

Vacuum cleaner

Hairdryer

Gas fire

Which goes to show our heavy reliance on services.

Would I have it any other way? No sir! Gone are the days of being a slave to the home. Gone is the nightmare of laundry, copper boilers and those dreadful wringers, outdoor drying if the weather was good or indoor drying by the fire, damp air causing chest complaints, and ceaseless ironing. No more bathing in cold rooms, or daily shopping for fresh food, walking to school or work, shovelling coal, scrubbing or polishing floors, pumice stones, Cardinal polish and chimney sweeps.

Some say ‘those were the days’ ... I beg to differ. Those were most definitely NOT the days one would wish to live through again.

But what WAS good about the old days was that people were friendlier. Neighbours were allies instead of enemies, nobody turned down a request for a cup of sugar or half a loaf. Just try asking neighbours for the loan of a pinch of salt nowadays. There were fewer neighbourbood arguments, more helping hands. If there was a crisis, neighbours moved in to help, unlike present times when neighbours often don’t even know your name.

It did me good to reminisce, it made me grateful for what I have ... and all brought on because I have to charge a few gadgets. 

See NOTE FOR THE DAY at the top of the sidebar

TECHNICAL GADGETS WE EITHER LOVE OR HATE

Wouldn’t we be lost without telephones? Mostly they bring us closer to relatives and friends, and more often than not they make it easy to deal with organisations, but sometimes they’re simply a pain in the ass.

We got so fed-up answering the numerous International phone calls, along with other presumed bonafide numbers sent to harass people, that we were forced to pay extra for ID Display. The charge is worth it, though, since we now know who or what is calling.

If it says International, number withheld or number unknown we ignore it,  except that the downside was when Joe rang from Australia and it showed, yes you guessed it, INTERNATIONAL. So we worked it that he would send an email to say when he would ring. Honestly, the things we have to go through to avoid nuisance calls.

However, sometimes all we see is a number and I’m quickly learning those to be avoided at all costs. Some spammers have got it sussed. If someone doesn’t answer they leave a message on voicemail and if, like us, you happen to use voicemail belonging to the telephone company then you have to pay to find out which (un)kind person left you a message! I have discovered that we can Google numbers to find out who called but it doesn’t stop them leaving voicemail messages - which we have to pay for.

What with that and spam email it’s a wonder we all stay sane. Here’s the latest new way to advertise, if advertising it really is. Is this an opportunity not to be missed, I ask myself?

This message contains blocked images.

Show ImagesOptions

Mrs Jenefar Gobat (from Hotel) sent you a private message:

PAN PACIFIC HOTEL JOB DISCRIPTIONS.
Suite 300-999 Canada Place Vancouver Canada.
From Mrs Jenefar Goba , Manager PAN PACIFIC HOTEL Canada.
This Invitation mail is from PAN PACIFIC HOTEL Canada, Pls PAN PACIFIC Hotel Needs Men And Women, Who Can Work And Live here In Hotel PAN PACIFIC Hotel Will Pay For Your Ticket And The Visa Fee In Your Country ,If You Are Interested kindly Contact us Back Ok.
E Mail; canadian_hotel@rocketmail.com
please reply me back
Mrs Jenefar Gobat General Manager PAN PACIFIC HOTELS VANCOUVER CANADA...

I didn’t dare release the blocked images... well, you know what goes on in hotels! 

oOo

My new catchphrase is I LOVE APPS. Yes, the iPad continues to entertain. I am addicted to some of the games and my pass rate is improving. For many years I’ve had a penchant for solving or trying to solve puzzles and this has developed even more with the iPad. Joe would probably tell you about the peacefulness that reigns when I’m occupied working through a seemingly unfathomable poser.  Some of the games are easy but others force me to persevere until I find the right clues, let alone the answers. Tell me about a new game and I can’t resist checking it out.

The latest app on my iPad is Britain’s Got Talent where I can vote for the acts as they are performed ... free. Beats using a landline phone and paying astronomic charges!

Oh where would we be without technology?

Since enrolling in ‘Cloud’ I have the added advantage of having the same games or other information on all my gadgets... the computer, the iPad and the iPhone. Take the day to day diary, for example: 

I can enter appointment dates, birthdays and other information on my computer and simultaneously those dates appear on the other devices. I can enter a date on the computer and delete it on the iPhone, and I can read blogs and reply to them on all gadgets. I can read, delete, or save email on iPad or phone so that next time I visit the computer I don’t have those jobs to do. But the best thing is being able to send photographs by phone to all stations, all thanks to wifi and ‘Cloud’. Isn’t that marvellous? 

I guess my needs are simple but I imagine businesses find it a cost-saving development. In case you’re interested the video below explains more about ‘Cloud’. Just imagine what a happy bunny I would be if I was younger and able to benefit from future developments, whatever they may be. I always said I was born in the wrong era...lol.