We all know that smartphones can provide maps and directions, a quick shot of information on virtually any topic (in the nick of time), and in most cities, they can hail you an Uber. They can take professional quality pictures. They can text. Most importantly, they can receive and deliver email, all the time, from […]
Merry Christmas from the Stalker Family 2015 – No More Inserts!
You’ve seen them. The folded piece of paper inside the Holiday card providing updates on all that is notable from the sender and their family in their Holiday Message. Maybe you’ve even written one yourself. Initially, these were a bit of a novelty, and as such, kind of fun. Then, they became a bit institutionalized as […]
The New Simplicity – Alacrity with Complexity
The Craving for Simplicity 150 years ago, in a shack he built-in the woods, Henry David Thoreau wrote, “Simplify, simplify, simplify!” In saying this, the Harvard grad and one-time pencil maker tapped into a seemingly perennial human yearning for simplicity in all things. This wish for simplicity remains today in full force. Look no further than […]
Columbia House Record Club – RIP
This past week it was announced that you could no longer buy 11 albums for one penny as Columbia House – the most famous of the “record clubs” of the 1970’s – finally called it quits. More lament for this aging baby boomer. Several weeks ago I shared similar sentiments about how the modern-day versions of what […]
Big Speakers – The Circle of Life
I grew up in a magical time in a magical place. The time was the early 1970’s. The place was Southern California. During that time, there was a once-in-a-lifetime confluence of musical talent and new musical technologies that created a boom in consumer electronics. Before there was video, there were stereos. These audio systems were like porn […]
Video Games – What’s the Problem?
For our twelve-year-old boy, all roads lead to video games. I don’t like this. It bothers me, a lot. Frankly, I don’t know what to do. When he is not playing video games, he’s either thinking about playing games or talking about them. More maddening is when he watches youtube videos of other people playing video games. This […]