Are You High Tech or Low Tech?

After years and years of being chained to T-mobile (the iphone-less cell provider), we all switched to Verizon. This is would hardly be newsworthy other than for the fact that Emily and I finally got iphones. The iphone 5 had been released that morning, so the 4s models were drastically reduced. We took advantage of the discounted prices and left the store feeling like we were finally a part of the same century as everyone else in the world.

In fairness, I do have an ipad, which I have thoroughly loved using, but there is something different about the iphone. For one, while I leave the ipad at home each day, my iphone is always with me. Secondly, since my ipad is 1st generation, this new iphone is upgraded and has lots more bells and whistles, including a wonderful camera. But the purpose of this piece is not to create ad copy for Apple (they hardly need my help!); rather, my love affair with my iphone has forced me to reexamine my split personality. On the one hand, I am almost Amish: I love to read,cook, knit, sew, make things with my hands. On the other hand, I am almost freakishly fascinated by the latest technological gizmos and gadgets.


My favorite moments come when I am finding bridges between the old and the new. For example, a few years ago I found out about a cool new website where you could upload your artwork and they would turn it into fabric and mail it to you. Spoonflower.com is the perfect marriage of old school and new school.

I took a photo of the kids from when they were little and, using photo-editing software on my mac, I turned into a neon-colored Warhol-esque piece of art which I then uploaded to Spoonflower. When the fabric arrived, I sewed it into a pillow.

Obviously, one of the most incredible marriages between old and new is the e-reader. I have owned a Kindle for several years and, while I still buy "real" books occasionally, I would hate to give up the brilliant convenience of having so many of my favorite tomes in one small, portable container. I fervently hope that, in this case, old and new can learn to happily co-exist. I don't want to give up on bookstores or the smell of paper and ink or the feel of a solid book in my hands. When I teach, I need to hold a dog-eared, well-loved copy of the book  as I page through and share with my students my copious handwritten notes.

Speaking of reading, another technological wonder I just discovered is the fact that since Audible has become part of the Amazon dynasty, there is a lovely easy link between the two called Whispersync for Voice. Let me tell you what this enables you to do: Now, you can read books on your Kindle, or the Kindle app on your iphone or ipad, and then go out for a long walk with your beloved dog and continue listening to the novel you were reading through your ipod or iphone Audible app. Here's the AMAZING part: when you crawl into bed that night and pick up your Kindle, it will sync to the last spot you listened to on your walk! Really!!! In the "old days," I would listen to a book on cd as I drove Josh all the way to Kinkaid, and then when I got home to read the book, it took me ages to find my place and visa versa the following day when I'd get back in the car. Certainly, I am not the only human out there who finds this high tech trick marvelous!

In Robin Sloan's quirky new novel, Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore, Sloan plays with the pull we feel to both old and new. His odd little book (you could almost read it in one sitting...or listen to it on a long walk and then finish up reading it in bed that night) cleverly draws the reader to the intersection of old and new: ancient encoded books and Google. I do not want to give too much away, but the ending seems, for me at least, to reinforce the idea that all knowledge can lead to insight and therefore should be embraced. Mystery and curiosity feed the soul. What seems extinct may only be hibernating. What seems to conflict may only be awaiting our deeper understanding and appreciation. As Sloan writes, "All the secrets in the world worth knowing are hiding in plain sight."