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A “luxury once tasted…” is what I experienced with high-speed Internet service. Last summer, we gained access to wireless high speed Internet in our rural town. What a difference from the old dial-up service. I could finally download photos without waiting all night. Then, due to problems beyond the company’s control, we lost our high speed Internet for several weeks. I was so used to the high speed that I didn’t even want to try to edit my Blog without it. Now, I finally have high speed Internet back, hopefully for good. Supposedly, we now have the latest technology available to serve us.
The experience gives us time to reflect on how things have changed over the years. I remember the first television my family had. I was only four years old then. If a family had a television, it was only one, and then it was often in the shop for repairs. Now, most families have more than one television, often each on a different channel.
I still remember the old telephone…and I am not talking about the rotary dial, either. We had to wind the crank to make a call, such as one long and one short or some combination of that, and speak into the mouthpiece. How did we know if that crank was considered long or short? I didn’t always get it right. Again, if a family had a phone, they only had one phone. Now, many have their own cell phone practically glued to their ear.
Don’t forget the running water. So many people take tap water for granted. Trust me. As a former water and sewer commissioner, I know. My first two grades in school were in a building without running water. The teacher brought drinking water from home for the bubbler. At recess, she went down to the river and brought up water to heat so we could wash our hands for lunch, brought to us in the trunk of the cook’s car from the village school.
So, the message is, be thankful for what you have. You’ve never had it so good!
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