Now on your content today. It is all a techBro spider web, this digital way of paying for life, that now can't be avoided. Once you are ensnared, there is no way out, the spider will bite sooner or later. This is why I started my Stack, and even though I get easily sidetracked by writing about other things, this short example of yours brings me back. Reminds me of my purpose.
I think you have read how I shop now, no? I go to each vendor or supplier of my purchased goods in person, once a month, have tea, have a chat, and then pay the bill, with a promise to do the same on the 1st of next month. This is how my grandparents from the old country of Odessa did it once, and it sure works for me now.
And this again highlights my cause, well, a shared cause, and this cause is a protest against what's going on in tech these days, against all these new entanglements that we did not ask for, but have to deal with, from new rules in Parenting to new security theatre in Banking, to a corruption in Political Discourse, we are being twisted into pretzels by mad men and their digital tinker toys, like Stripe and PayPal and then even at our credit unions and banks, who are being sold CRAP that we, the end user, have to suffer through each day of our digital lives.
Oh my, hearing my own words read aloud is quite an experience. Thanks, Jigs. It’s a better AI than some I’ve heard and actually seems almost human. Glad it provided you with something to listen to; and you’re so right about the technology stuff. I have resisted it for years and actually enjoyed going personally to get cash from one bank then paying my mortgage in person. It was only when I refinanced that I set up the auto pay because the whole thing was done on line. Still clinging to other old-fashioned ways as much as possible though.
well hang tough girl, i have a feeling the old ways will someday be the new ones :) yes, hearing a voice read ur words is something, and I love it personally. u were an editor once, no? Well, i remember when I had my editing hat on, I always verbalized the words during an edit, to catch that stuff you can't when you read characters on a page or screen. did you do that too? Well, now you can, at least on Medium it's built in. Wish it was here as well.
Yes. I read most of my stuff aloud a few times. But unfortunately most of my professional editing was of technical manuals for anti-submarine warfare which paid the bills while raising my daughter. So no literary aspirations then.
If I could chip in….. as a bit of a writer myself I always aim to read aloud what I have written before finalising. It is a good way to pick up awkward phrasing and irritating repetitions.
Thanks for joining the conversation. It’s fun to make good use of technology this way. By the way, I’m not sure where Norfolk is (heard of Norfolk Broads but not location) but just wanted to let you know I went to Bournemouth School for Girls for a year or two and still have relatives in Dorset. Now in the States for many years.
OK - well head north from Bournemouth for 100 miles or so, then turn right towards the bump on the east side of England. The northern half of that bump is Norfolk. Keep going towards the sea and you will find the Norfolk Broads about midway down. We live about 5 miles from the Broads. This year we bought an elderly (50+ years old) Broads cruiser which we use to provide some fun for my stepdaughter who is seriously disabled.
ha yes, an old trick with a new twist, this AI reading my words. Mine are now read in the voice of Snoop Dog. I like it. Saves my vocal cords for singing.
Well I read it Katharine. So sorry to hear about your frustration with the modern world. Like I suspect you did, my formative years involved paying for items by cheque, handwritten on real paper. Credit cards had not yet arrived. Email and the internet were non-existent - and the greatest threat was that someone might steal or forge your cheque. You could also always speak to someone in the bank because automatic call handling had not happened, and answering machines were rudimentary. Is the present way of life any better for us? The answer is probably “the curate’s egg” - parts of it are excellent and parts are rotten. Thanks for your various recommendations. I will check them out. We have a medical member of the family who lives in Melbourne, so tend to prick up our ears at mention of that city (which we have visited many times). We have recently been indulging Kath and Kim and will now take a look at FISK.
Definitely straddling the digital divide, Richard. I remember when I was very involved with Mum and her husband as they became older. I saw how Jack in particular was always saying “We used to do so and so . . .” I got frustrated and may have spoken harshly to him, so he switched to “Formerly, we did this or that.” And I am now so much more sympathetic to their plight. (See comment from Jigs on technology.)
It’s a conscious effort on my part to live by the mantra “How important is it?” Believe me, I’m much better at it now than when I was younger. And this was a luxury problem actually. At least I had the money in the bank. It just was inaccessible to my creditors!
Dear Katharine,
Do you know I hear your posts every Thursday now, as read by a Paltrow AI-like voice, and it's so soothing at 7 am with my coffee.
https://app.screencast.com/2gwVlCZ2jtwmd - have a listen! I am not even sure where that click comes from, but cool no?
Now on your content today. It is all a techBro spider web, this digital way of paying for life, that now can't be avoided. Once you are ensnared, there is no way out, the spider will bite sooner or later. This is why I started my Stack, and even though I get easily sidetracked by writing about other things, this short example of yours brings me back. Reminds me of my purpose.
I think you have read how I shop now, no? I go to each vendor or supplier of my purchased goods in person, once a month, have tea, have a chat, and then pay the bill, with a promise to do the same on the 1st of next month. This is how my grandparents from the old country of Odessa did it once, and it sure works for me now.
And this again highlights my cause, well, a shared cause, and this cause is a protest against what's going on in tech these days, against all these new entanglements that we did not ask for, but have to deal with, from new rules in Parenting to new security theatre in Banking, to a corruption in Political Discourse, we are being twisted into pretzels by mad men and their digital tinker toys, like Stripe and PayPal and then even at our credit unions and banks, who are being sold CRAP that we, the end user, have to suffer through each day of our digital lives.
Well, I have had it. How about you?
Yours in the shit,
Jigs
Oh my, hearing my own words read aloud is quite an experience. Thanks, Jigs. It’s a better AI than some I’ve heard and actually seems almost human. Glad it provided you with something to listen to; and you’re so right about the technology stuff. I have resisted it for years and actually enjoyed going personally to get cash from one bank then paying my mortgage in person. It was only when I refinanced that I set up the auto pay because the whole thing was done on line. Still clinging to other old-fashioned ways as much as possible though.
well hang tough girl, i have a feeling the old ways will someday be the new ones :) yes, hearing a voice read ur words is something, and I love it personally. u were an editor once, no? Well, i remember when I had my editing hat on, I always verbalized the words during an edit, to catch that stuff you can't when you read characters on a page or screen. did you do that too? Well, now you can, at least on Medium it's built in. Wish it was here as well.
Yes. I read most of my stuff aloud a few times. But unfortunately most of my professional editing was of technical manuals for anti-submarine warfare which paid the bills while raising my daughter. So no literary aspirations then.
If I could chip in….. as a bit of a writer myself I always aim to read aloud what I have written before finalising. It is a good way to pick up awkward phrasing and irritating repetitions.
Thanks for joining the conversation. It’s fun to make good use of technology this way. By the way, I’m not sure where Norfolk is (heard of Norfolk Broads but not location) but just wanted to let you know I went to Bournemouth School for Girls for a year or two and still have relatives in Dorset. Now in the States for many years.
OK - well head north from Bournemouth for 100 miles or so, then turn right towards the bump on the east side of England. The northern half of that bump is Norfolk. Keep going towards the sea and you will find the Norfolk Broads about midway down. We live about 5 miles from the Broads. This year we bought an elderly (50+ years old) Broads cruiser which we use to provide some fun for my stepdaughter who is seriously disabled.
ha yes, an old trick with a new twist, this AI reading my words. Mine are now read in the voice of Snoop Dog. I like it. Saves my vocal cords for singing.
ha, me too, IBM manuals! and the bills, and the kids... well, glad we both made it through that meat grinder!
Well I read it Katharine. So sorry to hear about your frustration with the modern world. Like I suspect you did, my formative years involved paying for items by cheque, handwritten on real paper. Credit cards had not yet arrived. Email and the internet were non-existent - and the greatest threat was that someone might steal or forge your cheque. You could also always speak to someone in the bank because automatic call handling had not happened, and answering machines were rudimentary. Is the present way of life any better for us? The answer is probably “the curate’s egg” - parts of it are excellent and parts are rotten. Thanks for your various recommendations. I will check them out. We have a medical member of the family who lives in Melbourne, so tend to prick up our ears at mention of that city (which we have visited many times). We have recently been indulging Kath and Kim and will now take a look at FISK.
Definitely straddling the digital divide, Richard. I remember when I was very involved with Mum and her husband as they became older. I saw how Jack in particular was always saying “We used to do so and so . . .” I got frustrated and may have spoken harshly to him, so he switched to “Formerly, we did this or that.” And I am now so much more sympathetic to their plight. (See comment from Jigs on technology.)
Total bummer. For me that kind of mix-up gets me very upset. You sound a lot better than I would understand the same circumstances.
It’s a conscious effort on my part to live by the mantra “How important is it?” Believe me, I’m much better at it now than when I was younger. And this was a luxury problem actually. At least I had the money in the bank. It just was inaccessible to my creditors!