Every time I come home to visit my parents, it seems like their television has grown in both size and price. Spurned on by a sense of competition with my gadget-loving aunt and uncle, my parents love to buy whatever is the latest in home entertainment systems. Unfortunately, their mastery of technology peaked with the VCR, so trips home tend to become a mix of maintenance calls, lessons, and frustrations.
Why come home at all? Simple: try explaining how to set up and use an iPod to my mother over the phone. The three hour car ride is worth it, believe me:
Me: So, you just go through the list of what you want to watch—-
Mom: Where’s this list? On the TV?
Me: No, on the computer….remember, I should you how to make your queue earlier.
Dad: Can I do that on my computer too? Or do I have to use her computer?
Me: It’s a website; anyone can use it from any computer.
Mom: Anyone? Do we need to worry about hackers?
Me:….Hackers for your Netflix. No. No. OK, focus: So you go through the list and pick something you want to watch—
Dad: What? People can hack into your mom’s movie list??
Me: OH MY GOD. NO. NO ONE IS GOING TO….(takes a deep breath)…..no one will mess with your movie stuff. OK, you pick something you want to watch and hit ‘select’. Then you just wait for it to load. Sometimes it takes awhile.
Mom: This is taking a long time. Does it always take this long? Maybe we need a new internet or something.
Dad: Yeah, we can get a new internet. Or just plug it into the phone down here. Why is it so slow? Are you sure it’s not a virus or something? Or the hackers?
That's not a euphemism... 