How Vintage Do You Go? -merged thread-

[renor27]

old school or a simple life?

I'm not anti-hi-tech, in fact am have returned to school to get my degree in nuke physics @ age 43.
I have a cell phone use that for long distance etc and being in school with young adults they text me all the time with questions ( am the geek in a few few classes they like the free help with home work ). It is also fun o give some one a call from the top of a Sierra Peak to say guess what I'm on top of Mt... I do also have a land line phone with local service only...no long distance, and no answering machine you can leave a voice mail on my cell phone.
I grew up with television but was not watched but for the news or PBS . When I moved out of my parents home I did not get a TV that was 25 years ago still do not have one do watch DVDs on my computer.
I did not resisted computers @ all when they first came out Got my first e-mail address back in 1996. Am a Mac user so part of the smaller side of the whole computer thing. But the internet can be an addictive have to watch that i do not spend to much time on it. I love the fact i can look over 4 papers in the morning while drinking my expresso I do belong to a few groupies like the FL and enjoy It's really fun to connect with people who appreciate the same things I do and a great way to share information. In fact due to the next it has come to light that many of Nevada's ghost towns where being striped by people for the wood or hard wear to put in high end houses. There is now a groupie made up from all walks of life that is going out into the ghost towns to photograph the past to save it.
I do not have AC in my cottage why I live @ the base of the Sierra I open the windows @ night and the door and let the fresh air in. I do use the Ac in the truck when in the desert when the temp out side is 114 the Ac makes life for me and the K9 enjoyable. Do have a micro wave but my stove is gas an 1920's Wedge wood apartment model that I save from a building that was being torn down years ago. It is small 20 inches wide but cooks a nice meal can do a 4# chicken on Sundays.
As for cars etc. I have a bicycle for the short trip to the cafe or movies. I also ride a 1964 BMW with sidecar its simple and easy to work on always gets a wave and the K9 likes to have the wind in her face as we explore the back roads. The sidecar is great for a trip to the store also. I also drive a 20 year old Toyota truck the gas milage is good the 4 wheel drive helps in the winter. In the shop is a 1966 VW bug that some day I will get back on the road but for now it sits waiting for me to have the time and money to rebuild it.
So guess i can say I mix the old with the new take what works from all eras and use that in my life. I just try to lead a simple life.

 

[desi_de_lu_lu]

I'm not anti-hi-tech, but I refuse to use the parts of it that make life more hectic or complex. I find that having grown up in the 1950s makes it easier for me to shun many of the new "conveniences" that have made modern life so hectic.

I have never had a cel phone and have no desire for one. I have one landline phone with local service only...no long distance, no answering machine.

I grew up with television and have a fairly modern CRT TV as well as VCRs and DVD players. But no cable TV. My reception is via an antenna on the roof. I *am* experimenting with a TV converter box to receive digital broadcasts on my analog TV so I can continue to receive "over the air" TV after February 17. Probably won't get an HDTV until my present TV dies.

I strongly resisted computers until 1999 when having one became necessary for my job. Computers are a mixed bag...they make work easier, allow me to work at home on bad weather days and are a non-obtrusive way to keep up with distant friends. But the internet can be an addictive waste of time, as can e-bay! I've been working to minimize my internet surfing and e-bay shopping. The FL is the only internet community I participate in but I *do* enjoy it. It's really fun to connect with people who appreciate the past as I do!

I do not have air condirtioning in my house and seldom use it in the car.

But I will admit to using the microwave oven for more than just warming leftovers...the mark of a bachelor I'm afraid.

I also believe in being self sufficient...I do my own house and car repairs; can fix a TV or a reluctant oil burner using whatever modern technology is necessary to do the job.

You and renor27 are basically my husbands heroes.

 

[Hemingway Jones]

There are more things in the world than there used to be. You can use these things or not. Things are tools that can be abused or not. Speaking on a cell phone for 6 hours a day (non work related) may be problematic, using it to keep in touch with mom and friends is not.

Is life truly getting faster than it used to be? I depends where you are. When I am down South or out West, I cannot believe how long it takes to order food or to buy something from a cashier. It's as if people are moving in slow motion. Boston is a very fast city and it always has been. New York is as well.

I am open to all tools and toward maximizing them toward accomplishing the goals of my life. The main goals of my life continues to be: meet as many people as possible and to establish close connections, to learn as much as I can, and to develop my character. Technology enables this; character keeps it in check.

 

[Ben]

I'm highly dependent on my debit card, but I also maintain an Excel "virtual check-register" so it's still as if I were writing checks, but without the "we don't take checks here" attitude. And since most of my larger purchases are online, it saves me the risk of a credit-card...

Be careful with the debit cards and virtual checks. They do not offer the same protections as credit cards if your identity is stolen. The laws are different, but many of us make the mistake that if there is a major card brand logo, the same rules apply. Be sure to check with your bank about liability for fraudulent charges before making purchases with a debit card, especially on line.

 

[adamjaskie]

I'm 23, and just graduated from college with a degree in Computer Science, so there's the young and high-tech stuff right there.

I have a cell phone. I don't plan to ever get a landline, as it would be redundant. My address is kind of in flux right now, what with living at my parents' house while I am looking for an apartment (I have a job; trying to find a place to live before I start work in a couple weeks) and moving back from college. I'm in and out of the house a lot, looking for places, visiting with friends, and so forth. A cell phone just makes it easier, with the benefit that I don't actually have to *do* anything when I move. The billing address is at my parents' house, but I don't get paper bills, so I won't even bother changing that. I can move halfway across the country, and my friends can reach me without even knowing that I moved.

Despite carrying my cell phone everywhere, I don't use anywhere near my 400 minutes/month, I rarely use text messaging, don't have a camera in my phone, and don't have an obnoxious ringtone---my phone is almost always on vibrate.

I have a digital SLR. I'm very interested in photography, and until very recently was using a Canon AE-1 (film SLR from about 1980). Unfortunately, film is EXPENSIVE now. Processing is expensive, too. It was getting really expensive to use my camera, so I switched.

I don't have a TV; I use my computer for that. I can watch DVDs just fine, and usually find TV shows on the networks' web sites, or less... legitimate sources. I get my news from the internet, and from newspapers. I like to be able to pick and choose the stories I read, so TV news holds no interest for me. Too much garbage about who married who and got divorced a week later. The internet has more room for material than a newspaper, and I feel wasteful for buying newspapers, so it's usually the internet for my news.

I rarely use the microwave for much beyond heating leftovers and packaged foods (with microwave directions). A dedicated electric kettle heats water faster than a microwave, in my experience, and I wouldn't know where to start to use the microwave for cooking. I can cook just fine with pots, pans, and a stove, and quite enjoy doing so. I don't really trust microwaves. They seem to give some foods an odd texture. Soggy and rubbery.

I don't have any problem dealing with the lack of electricity, though. I love camping and hiking, and think nothing of being without electricity, internet, or cell service for weeks at a time. Not being able to get in touch with people would be inconvenient, but I'd survive, and be able to get some reading done.

 

[Darhling]

It's funny I am getting tired of my cellphone, half the time it isnt even charged or turned on anymore. I think it is nice that I can have some peace every once in a while, without people being able to reach me. I know if an emergency happens it will be bad if no one can reach me, but it is nice with a quiet evening sometimes. I do have a landline though, but not many people have that number.

 

[adamjaskie]

Oh, I forget to charge my cell phone all the time, or leave it on vibrate on a soft surface and go off and forget about it. I'd still rather have a cell than a landline, though, even if 95% of the time my cell phone sat on my dresser with me out of the house. I don't see a point to having *both*, unless you have the landline as a side-effect of having DSL or something, in which case you might as well plug a cheap phone into it to have around.

 

[freebird]

A cell phone saved my neck.

On New Years Eve 2004 I was heading home from a party at the Church I was attending. I can't drive after dark, so I thought I would be smart and ride my bicycle. In between my apartment and the Church, there was a steep hill. I had no lights on my bicycle, and didn't realize there were no street lights.

On the way home, I coasted down the hill, and was going pretty fast, I met a car and was blinded by its headlights. I started over to give it some room, but after being blinded I couldn't tell where I was on the road.

The next thing I knew I was feeling weeds hitting my shins, then WHAM, I was flying and rolling down the ditch. When I came to a rest, I lay there for a moment, and the only thing that was going through my head was "I hope there isn't a skunk nearby". I remembered the cell phone, it was the first time in quite some time that I'd even carried one , as I had closed my contract a year earlier. Mom decided to loan me hers that morning so I could call home.

I got the cell phone out of my pocket, and called the ambulance, and some friends that were at the Church. They had trouble finding me due to there being no street lights, and I was in tall weeds. If not for the cell phone, I would've laid there all night or longer. I spent almost a month in hospital, nearly dying, from complications of a broken leg and breathing problems.

I was told later that I had hit a road sign at 40 mph and flew/rolled 25 feet down the ditch.

 

[VintageJoAnn]

I decided to keep my cell phone after my car battery died on rt.1 in Md and people were whizzing by and making very rude gestures!
I did my back to the land thing in the 70's and as God is my witness I will never carry heavy loads of wet laundry outside to be hung up again. I'm just happy to hear from all your posts that there are people who actually value quality of life over quanity.
Just because something is new and available does'nt mean it's for you.
At christmas I had the experience of visiting family(we were invited) only to discover the agenda was to play video games all day instead of actually conversing. Ok, now I just feel old and will stop.

 

[Paisley]

Re: video games--I feel the same way about the TV. Unless it's a party based on what's on TV (like a Superbowl party), I think it's a lot easier to visit if it's off.

 

[Diamondback]

Be careful with the debit cards and virtual checks. They do not offer the same protections as credit cards if your identity is stolen. The laws are different, but many of us make the mistake that if there is a major card brand logo, the same rules apply. Be sure to check with your bank about liability for fraudulent charges before making purchases with a debit card, especially on line.

Did I mention I'm just short of clinically-paranoid about who I do business with? I usually require at least three separate references before I'll do business with a vendor, always from people in their field.

Thanks for the reminder, good points for everyone to consider.

 

[desi_de_lu_lu]

Did I mention I'm just short of clinically-paranoid about who I do business with? I usually require at least three separate references before I'll do business with a vendor, always from people in their field.

Thanks for the reminder, good points for everyone to consider.

two words:

Shred everything.

 

[Amy Jeanne]

Couldn't go old school at all...

Cell Phone = Have one, but rarely use it. Only to keep in touch with my husband and mom. I hate texting and hardly ever do it. I once had a boss who was texting while she was DRIVING us somewhere. That disgusted me.

Microwave = I just use it to warm stuff.

Ipod = The only times I listen to it is in the car or at work. I love music so much that it's a godsend for long drives! I can listen to *my* music. And since we're allowed to listen to them where I work, I've recently become a majour fan of old time radio. I can listen to Burns & Allen and My Friend Irma all day long! If it wasn't for the iPod, I would have otherwise never heard any OTR as my husband is not a huge fan.

TV = We just bought a 52" HDTV and the first thing I watched on it was Footlight Parade (1933). Oh. My. Goodness. My eyes nearly popped out of my head. Everything was so big and clear -- and I noticed little things I never noticed on our 1993 19" TV!! And to think I spent the better years of my old movie viewing on that thing!

Credit = Mine is excellent, over 750. I can manage it. Never started to use credit until I was 29. I'm very glad I didn't have it when I was younger.

Computer = I'd say that 95% of my vintage knowledge has come from the computer, whether it be a website, a movie schedule, ordering a book off amazon, or buying Photoplay magazines from ebay -- it all boils down to that one place.

I think modern technology used to enhance vintage interests is a great thing. It's made my life better.

 

[Archéologue]

So there we were in 1979. Newly married, and driving across the USA in an
old Chevy Chevette. Everything we owned was in a roof top luggage carrier.
We went to Newport, Oregon on a whim, rented a shack on the bluffs over
the ocean, and were happy. No TV, no cell phones, no computers, no I-pod,
no CD player, no programmed coffee maker, no gizmos except for a wind up clock and a battery AM/FM radio.

We pulled mussels off the rocks, cooked them for dinner. Bought fish down at the harbor right off the boats, picked salmon berries in the hills, walked, talked, worked, loved, and were happy. Do we really need so many "things" to have a good life?

I want to hear the surf at night.
I miss those days terribly.
-Mike S

 

[Snookie]

My mom grew up on a rural farm in Illinois, with none of the modern convieniences. Then the government decided in the 50's that all these rural farms needed electricity, so it was installed on the government's dime. So there's my mom at age seven, sitting in the living room watching TV, still without any running water in the house! But wouldn't any child prefer it that way? (I'm sure they added many other things that also ran on electricity, but they don't make as good a story.)

 

[ScionPI2005]

At christmas I had the experience of visiting family(we were invited) only to discover the agenda was to play video games all day instead of actually conversing. Ok, now I just feel old and will stop.

Speaking of which, has anyone else experienced going over to a friend's house for dinner, and when everyone sits down, the TV remains on in the corner? It seems like some people have lost the ability to carry a conversation and to actually CONVERSE while eating dinner in a quiet atmosphere. I was raised to eat dinner as a family, and except for maybe some background music (low enough to be non-intrusive) we would actually converse. I feel very uncomfortable if a TV is on in the background when I'm eating with people.

Back to the subject of cell phones, I too forget my cell phone a lot these days. It may just be because hardly anyone ever calls me, but there have been several days lately where I forget to turn it on when I wake up (naturally, after being woken up at 2am by a friend who doesn't ever sleep, mine stays off at night), and nearly an entire day passes with it off. Imagine the horrified expressions of anyone actually TRYING to reach me!

 

[patrick1987]

John Goodman sang a song in the movie True Stories with the line "People like us, who will answer the telephone." This is how I deal with my phone at home and my cell phone. I don't have an answering machine nor caller ID. If it rings I answer it. It might be a telemarketer who isn't on my do not call list or it might be someone good. Very few average people had unlisted telephone numbers. I like being available.

 

[Tango Yankee]

Speaking of which, has anyone else experienced going over to a friend's house for dinner, and when everyone sits down, the TV remains on in the corner?

The TV is always on at my father-in-law's house. He generally has it turned up as he is slightly deaf. We go over most Sunday mornings; my wife cooks breakfast, he'll stand in the kitchen talking with her, and I tend to sit at the counter between the kitchen and the family room where the TV is. Since I can't hear what they're saying over the TV I generally wind up just sitting there reading the paper. I tried turning off the TV once--bad idea. We can sometimes get it turned down, though.

My wife, coming from such a TV-oriented background, insists on having a TV in the bedroom. She turns it on to shows that are semi-interesting to her so she can watch it but not get hooked on it. Me, if the TV is on I tend to watch it--that's what it's for, after all. I usually wind up staying up late waiting for her to fall asleep so I can turn off the TV and go to bed.

I do like the things that make life easier, better. Technological advances tend to do that. Unfortunately, for some reason the tendency is to use them to speed life up, not to slow down and enjoy it. Wasn't it back in the aftermath of WWII that we thought that technology's labor saving devices would take the drudgery out of work, and that we'd use them to gain more leisure time? What ever happened to that concept? Instead we're working longer hours than ever. "Do more with less." What a concept.

When I was stationed on Guam Super Typhoon Paka hit the island 10 days before Christmas. The power infrastructure was wiped out. My house was in one of the last neighborhoods for power to be restored. I was without power for 40 days. It wasn't fun.

Can't live for long without my computer and internet access, figuratively speaking. I'm currently using an older computer we have in the house while trying to recover a hard drive from my primary system. I tend to keep my data backed up, but it had been a while since I'd backed up the system state. The one file I desperately want to recover is my Internet "Favorites" file! I've added way to much to it in recent months to want to try to start over--though I suppose that in some ways that wouldn't be a bad idea.

Still, I'm a bit bemused by those who live and die by their multi-function cell-phone-palm-top computer-camera-MP3 player-alarm clock-etc. I'm not sure I really want to be that connected.

I think that technology has made us lazy in some ways--or that it's used at times to do away with functions that shouldn't be done away with. Anyone read a newspaper or magazine and found it obvious that the text had not been edited by a copy editor--at least, not in the old way? Instead it's reliance on spell checker and, sometimes, grammar checker. Not the best plan, but cheaper than a salary I suppose.

So no, I'm not "old school" technology-wise, though I am a bit slow to jump on technology bandwagons at times. At least I think I am--I thought I was getting into the game late when I finally ordered my first PC in Dec 1992 and got my first personal e-mail address in 1994. Heck, I was even one of the first users of Match.com in the '94-'95 time frame, though it didn't do me much good in Germany. And in the end, I wound up married to a woman I originally met the old-fashioned way--in person.

Regards,
Tom

 

[Tango Yankee]

John Goodman sang a song in the movie True Stories with the line "People like us, who will answer the telephone." This is how I deal with my phone at home and my cell phone. I don't have an answering machine nor caller ID. If it rings I answer it. It might be a telemarketer who isn't on my do not call list or it might be someone good. Very few average people had unlisted telephone numbers. I like being available.

I never had caller ID until I moved in with my wife. I find I check it before answering the phone specifically because of telemarketers. If it's an out-of-area or 800 number I let the machine pick it up. We're on the do not call list and have an unlisted number but companies that have an established business relationship can still call. More often then not when the answering machine starts they hang up. Easier on me that way--I hate having to be rude to get off the phone.

Cheers,
Tom

PS I just remembered something I used to use (before cell phones) when I needed to get off the phone and the other person wouldn't let me get a word in edgewise: I'd suddenly tell them "Hey, I've got to go--the phone's ringing!" Not so much fun any more since it could be true.

Also, remember when the one question you didn't ask someone you had just called was "Where are you?"

 

[Archéologue]

It seems that TV and Cell Fone are now the indispensible gizmos, as seen on this thread.

How about those new cell phones people wear in their ear? Looks like a plastic thing that wraps along the side of the head. Virtually non-stop contact with everyone else. Lots of the UPS drivers now wear them.

I totally agree with Scion PI2005's comments that we are losing some of the
ability to socialize when in each others physical presence (my words, not a quote).

I unplug the coaxial cable from the living room TV when relatives come over for dinner. They always turn the thing on and watch stuff instead of interacting. Wish I could neutralize their cell phones some how too.
-Mike S