- cellphone? Pay-per-minute, no camera, no web access
- laptop? $350-model bought as a backup when we couldn't live 3 days without our sickly main computer
- Kindle? None, despite my begging...
- IPod Touch? Ha!
- Cable TV? Not even...
Let's face it, people; Larry and I are not early adopters. And once we do get our hands on a new (to us) piece of technology, it takes us forever to learn to use it.
That all changed yesterday. David and I watched Steve Jobs present his new
est creation and suddenly a new thought crept into my head: Must we always be the 21st-century equivalent of the Flintstones? Is that indeed our destiny? Or could we exercise our God-given free will to change the trajectory of fate, bend it to our will, as it were?By my calculations, we've saved 8,640 dollars over the past 18 years by not paying for cable TV. No cellphone contract the past 5 years? That's another 4000 dollars that should be lying around here somewhere. Throwing in the missing Kindle and the never-bought (but much coveted) IPod Touch pushes what I am now calling the IPad nest egg past the $13K mark.
$13,000! Now, I know there are some other dinosaurs out there (including, um, Larry) who are - right at this minute - generating sensible thoughts like "IRA" or "College Fund." But isn't that sort of thinking so last century? With our country still mired in its worst economic recession in decades, is this really the time to be frugal? Does not patriotic duty demand that Larry and I step boldly into that brave new world of gee-whiz electronics from which we have been exiled for so long?
As we watched President Obama address the nation last night on our computer (remember? no cable), I said to Larry, "You know, if I had an IPad, it would be as if he were talking directly to me."
I don't know why my husband doesn't take me seriously anymore.
************
By the way, was it my imagination or did President Obama essentially say "WTF?" to the Supreme Court during his State of the Union address last night?
And (apropos of nothing) did you know that Supreme Court Justices have to buy their own robes? It's true - Justice Breyer mentioned it when he was a guest on Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me. And Paula Poundstone, upon hearing this little-known fact, said, "Are you kidding me? You have to buy your own robes? Man, that's like working at IHOP."
Here's the segment, for your listening enjoyment...the robe discussion begins at minute 13, but the whole thing is worth listening to. I heart Paula Poundstone. And, comedy-wise, Justice Breyer is no slouch himself. I like that in a Supreme Court Justice.
And (apropos of nothing) did you know that Supreme Court Justices have to buy their own robes? It's true - Justice Breyer mentioned it when he was a guest on Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me. And Paula Poundstone, upon hearing this little-known fact, said, "Are you kidding me? You have to buy your own robes? Man, that's like working at IHOP."
Here's the segment, for your listening enjoyment...the robe discussion begins at minute 13, but the whole thing is worth listening to. I heart Paula Poundstone. And, comedy-wise, Justice Breyer is no slouch himself. I like that in a Supreme Court Justice.
Isn't everyone saying, "WTF?" to the Supreme Court? But it's good; this country is sorely in need of something to unify conservatives and liberals and I think this supreme court decision certainly does that.
ReplyDeleteAs a random aside, I think radio clips should come with closed captioning; it's so helpful for those of us who suffer from early onset hearing loss.
ReplyDeleteI'm ignoring the political part and just focusing on the iPad. Bad name. But still. Get one, and tell us all about it!
ReplyDeleteSomebody needs to say WTF to the Supreme Court.
ReplyDeleteI do love me some Wait, Wait.
Okay, you've convinced me. You can definitely afford the iPad!
ReplyDeleteAnd yeah, I thought he kind of brought it to 'em last night.
"You know, if I had an IPad, it would be as if he were talking directly to me." OK, that was a funny visual.
ReplyDeleteI also NEED an iPad. NEED, not want. You can tell I NEED it by how much louder I can whine.
You've definitely earned an iPad. Heck, I might have earned an iPad, except we are currently paying for cable. I hope my husband and his penchant for Cash Cab and BBC America's Top Gear saves me on this one. After all, I can watch Jon Stewart to my heart's content online.
ReplyDeleteI have a friend who has met Paula Poundstone (even has a picture with her), the lucky girl.
Even I said "WTF?!?" to the Supreme Court, and I don't think I've ever said that before. It must be the dawning of a new era.
There's an interesting Wash Post article, saying Obama as a senator voted against Alito's confirmation, saying he was a good judge generally but that he consistently voted for the bigger power interests and the rich over the little guy every single time.
ReplyDeleteWhen Obama won the election, the Supremes had him and Biden over for a hello/greet before the swearing. Alito snubbed them and refused to come, and refused to attend the swearing-in, either.
Hahaha!
ReplyDeleteYou made me LOL when I read the title of your new post! I just had checked different web sources re Ipad for half an hour and then I came here! LOL!
I want one, too...
Your logic is convincing! You can afford iPads for all! (but the name! iPads sound like technological and electronic sanitary products. Or is it just me?)
ReplyDeleteAnd I love Wait, Wait. Thanks for the link.
I don't know about this ipad. I keep thinking that holding one will be like holding a clipboard, making me feel like a computery version of Julie from the Love Boat.
ReplyDeleteOh SC, you must realize that with that large a screen, that iPad is doomed. Just once that you forget to put it in a hard case, a small person will drop a text book on it and shatter that flat screen. I am sure of it, I saw it and thought, "invitation to disaster for people with children." Then the kids chimed in with all the other ways they think they could break it by accident.
ReplyDeleteI can't believe they named it iPad. Seriously. I'm going to get one, but I will instantly rename it to George Clooney or Michael Vartan.
ReplyDeleteI heard on the radio a review that likened it to a "bunch of iphone's attached to a cafeteria tray." I'm not sure if that was a bad review or a good one. If you've ever been to the Apple store, that place is the best/worst place on earth.
ReplyDeleteToo funnY!
ReplyDeleteWTF indeed. Not to the iPad, but to the Supreme Court. The SHAME of it.
ReplyDeleteThe iPad is like a phone on steroids--here when all technology has gotten smaller, someone finally gets it that Baby Boomers who buy it? Need a big screen and big font!
I thought we were the only family who doesn't have cable. We have enough time wasters without paying for 150 extra television stations to surf through.
ReplyDeleteWe do however have the iPod touch. I can only begin to tell you of it's wonderfulness! (except for the part where it thinks that it knows what I want to type more than I know what I want to type. Whenever I signed my name to an email, it kept changing it to "Kill" I have no idea how many emails I sent out like that before I noticed it.)
We too are coveting the iPad. My son's have watched the video of Steve Jobs introducing it like 40 times.
With all the money you have saved, I think you could get an iPad for every member of the family.
Paula is SO quick on her feet. I follow her on Twitter and she's hilarious.
ReplyDeleteI thought that picture was illustrating how much Steve Jobs had shrunk, that he had to hold up his iPhone with 2 hands. I've got to start reading the stories that go with the pictures.
ReplyDeleteInteresting. I have no desire for an iPad, but still desire an iPhone/iTouch. I can see the iTouch happening, I just learned about Rev Civ or Civ Rev or something. Also, I'm all for letting others work the bugs out -- I just got my very first iPod for Christmas.
ReplyDeleteOk, so you're not the only one who lives in a cave. I didn't even HEAR about the IPad until I read your blog. What a great invention to wake up to this morning. I asked my husband for one, and he said no. Replied something about my current cell phone ending up in the washer. I told him if it did cool things (besides call people) I'd never let it happen. Oh well.
ReplyDeleteI think funny should be a job requirement for a SC justice. :)
ReplyDeleteOne of my dearest friends is a Circuit Court Judge in Wisconsin. Not only was I surprised when he informed me he had to pay for his own robe, he also confirmed that pant-less judges are not always just a stereotype. I think, just from his Facebook activity, that oftentimes he's FBing up on his high, holy throne, too.
ReplyDeleteMy husband is planning on getting the IPad the second it comes out. He's a Mac fanatic. I think if he could, he would give Steve Jobs his own pancreas. But, man, talk about falling down on the job, that name is just hideous. I'm kind of glad I haven't purchased a Kindle yet. We'll see how this pad works.
And Kudos for you for staying unplugged in this modern world. Once, we lost power for almost the entire day. Once the battery died on my laptop, I thought I would die. It's sick, really.
And here all this time I thought you were highly savvy in all things technology.
ReplyDeleteThe iPad is a ridiculous name, and it's fairly ridiculous that they just made a very large iTouch.
ReplyDeleteI love Paula on Wait Wait -it's a perfect fit for her!