What’s this world coming to? I’m an 80-year-old techie now!
Me! With nine grandkids. How could this possibly have happened?
Well, truth of the matter is that perhaps I’m not really a
techie, but I’m farther along than I’d ever dreamed--so far along that people
actually call me for help. Between you and me, most of the time I can’t help
them, but amazingly enough sometimes I can.
So how did all this happen? When my first Dell crashed a
year ago, I was precisely where most 80 year old grandmas are. I knew how to
turn the darn thing on, and I could send e-mails, but that was it. Everything
changed when my granddaughters Megan and Amy convinced me to buy an Apple. They both said it was very user friendly. I
believed them. Now, this isn’t an Apple commercial. My new computer was totally
different from my Dell, and I nearly went berserk learning the new language and
commands.
Anyhow, when I first went into the Apple store to buy the
machine, there were two children sitting on the floor, banging on the computer with
great precision. When I asked their mother how old they were she said four and
five. How humiliating. Then and there I promised myself that if they go do it.
I could do it.
So what did I do? I signed up for 6 months of one-on- one
lessons. When I came home from the first
lesson, which I’d immortalized on a tape recorder so as to retain all the
information, tears started streaming down my face in sheer frustration. User friendly indeed!
I persevered. I kept pleading with my instructors to please
be patient with this old lady, but even now and then I caught them rolling
their eyes. After a few months I actually started getting the hang of it. Hey,
look at me! I can do it!
Of course what I could do at that point was pretty basic
stuff. These computers are miracle machines, and can do thousands of times what
we usually ask of them. But can you imagine---after 6 months I was able to
build my own web site without any help at all. I’m not saying it was without
its moments of sheer aggravation, but the point is, I did it. Little old 80-year-old me.
This was the kickoff. When Megan was in town from college
she got me hooked on social networking. I got myself set up on Facebook,
Twitter and Linkedin. Well, to be honest, Megan helped me just a wee little
bit. I discovered social networking
isn’t just for teenagers. Nearly 3/4 of the baby boomers are on some network or
other. Over 27 million people 55 and over use social networking. You can too. For housebound seniors it’s particularly
wonderful; letting them maintain contact with old friends and creating new
ones. It’s a magic carpet for finding old school chums you never thought you’d
hear from again.
Next came Skype. It
is a camera built into new computers where you can see and talk to friends and
family for free, anywhere in the world. If your old computer doesn’t have a
camera, you can buy a portable Skype for around $40 at many stores. My husband
and I use it frequently. We have a granddaughter and her husband living in
Japan we can talk to, and see. During the earthquake and Tsunami it was reassuring
to keep in touch. We can see our
long-distance twin 18 month old great grandkids, who by the way, are the cutest
you’ll ever see and Skype helps them remember us between visits. One of my
friends back in Kansas City watched a wedding of her grandson in New York via
Skype because she had just come home from the hospital and couldn’t travel. You
don’t know what you are missing.
It’s never too late and nobody’s too old. Ruth Hamilton died two months before her
110th birthday. She had been blogging (putting
messages on the computer)until the very end. What a remarkable woman who was
eager to embrace anything new. You can see and hear her on the website
growingbolder.com Then there is Gertrude Crowley at age 97 used Facebook to
make new friends. You see with her macular degeneration, her eyesight was
almost nil. She acquired almost 100 friends online. A maven friend visited her
every day and encouraged her to put stories on her page. He checked and read
her e-mails and she dictated her answers.
She claims she was never bored.
For seniors who are housebound and cannot easily use the
computer because of arthritis, low vision or other difficulties, there are
devices such as Talking Desktop software and speech recognition that can be
purchased for around $75. If you say you
are bored or have time on your hands now that you are retired, quite frankly
it’s your own fault. Buy yourself a
computer, learn to use it. There are
classes at the local community center, library, and you don’t even have to pay
for them. Become a techie like me!
Sunie Levin, is a
graduate of Missouri University and holds degrees in Psychology and Education.
She founded the Midwest Ready and Dyslexia Clinic for children and adults with
learning problems in Kansas City Missouri. A popular lecturer, she has
conducted seminars throughout the country and has written syndicated columns
for many newspapers. She has appeared on local and national T.V. and
radio. Her recent book is Make New
Friends Live Longer. web: http://www.makenewfriendslivelonger.com
Copyright © 2012
It is always exciting to hear about retirees and senior citizens entering the exciting world of the internet. I can still remember the fun I had with my Grandmother teaching her how to use online shopping..although my Grandfather was more impressed with the ability to order some of what he lovingly called "Brown lemonade".
As Sunie has pointed out technology today has made it easier and easier for Seniors to gain access to the Internet and we at Hale & Fun (yes..cue the sales pitch- Sorry but I am really excited about these courses and lets face it those of you who know me- I love the Internet and my computers!). are 100% behind encouraging the mature learner to join the technology revolution- we have a number of courses that cover all the basics and can even offer more advance courses if you are interested, some of these courses can be found at the links below:
Facebook, Twitter and Skype for beginners:- (http://www.haleandfun.com.au/course_info.php?courseid=56)
- The Personal Computer and you – amazing things you can do with a keyboard
- ( http://www.haleandfun.com.au/course_info.php?courseid=57)
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