“LOST MUSKET DIARY” March 4, 2015
Sunny and Breezy 71°F/22°C in Rancho Santa Margarita
Buongiorno,
I was sitting in front of my computer screen this morning,
munching on my morning bagel - New York-style: Lox and cream cheese, capers, slice of onion and tomato along with fresh cut melon and strawberries,
when it signaled me that Laura was calling from Rome on Skype. With a click of the mouse, my daughter in law came on the
screen. We had already spoken once when she told me that my son would call me
when he got home, since we hadn't talked in a few days. Well, he was in the
kitchen making dinner, so she picked up the laptop and walked me down the hall
to say hello. My number two child (in seniority) was chopping ingredients for
the quiche. As we chatted, Mike set
the laptop for a “two-shot,” and we talked while I continued to munch on my
bagel and he went on with their dinner preps.
 |
| Buon Appetito! Laura and Mike |
Welcome to my life
in the Internet age. My son and his wife live in Rome – 6400 miles east of
Rancho Santa Margarita and my number one child (in seniority) Dana, along with four of my grandchildren, will be
moving to Texas later this year. Dana's first-born is in the Marines on Okinawa making sure that the only American that Kim Jong Un overwhelms is Dennis Rodman. This means that future family visits will be
conducted entirely in Cyberspace, a more personal exercise than waiting for the
postman to deliver that annual Christmas Letter. Mike and I have been
doing this for the past few years, at first because it was merely a good way to
avoid the hugely expensive rates for overseas phone calls. Now for us, it’s
become a primary line of family communication. I’m pleased to report that it’s
71 degrees and sunny where I am, and he, in turn reports that it’s raining in
Rome. The three of us visit for about 45 minutes. I feel just like the neighbor
who drops by just as you’re trying to get dinner on the table and stands there
chatting. I decided to let them enjoy their meal in private, but just before we
signed off, our glasses were raised in a toast.
This means of
communicating has all sorts of possibilities. You can show the other party your
cell phone snap shots and videos and bore them to tears with the videos of the
little kid’s first dance recital or youth soccer match. But, there’s no hiding!
You can’t call in sick and tell the boss you’ve contracted Ebola, when it’s
obvious to anyone watching can tell that a ripping hangover is the real
culprit. At this point you may be thinking, “This
is not news! This is nothing but ‘an amazing grasp of the obvious!’” And,
you’d be right. Telecommunicating in this day and age is a no-brainer for those
of us who grew up in the computer age, but, there are a lot of people who still
find placing a long distance phone call a challenge. My brother, for instance,
who has a computer, but only checks his email every couple of weeks. Or, my
cousin Richard, a retired school teacher who should know better, who doesn’t
even own a computer, and brags about being a Luddite. A pox on both of them! Preaching to this choir is a
challenge. Almost like advocating gay marriage in Arkansas or Alabama.
Even the best of
friends tend to drift apart and lose touch when great distances come between
them. And how many very personal relationships are rent asunder by long
distances? It’s one thing to maintain an old fashioned correspondence among
distance family members and friends, or long distance conversing by telephone,
but the missing ingredient is the “face-to-face” element, and that’s where Skype, or FaceTime, or any other
variation on video chatting comes in. True, the warm breath in your ear or the
slobbery kiss from your grandma may be missing, but at least you’re visiting
face to face. Now, with the right software or app the kids can do their homework together. This is especially
helpful if you are helping your grandson with his social studies, and he lives
in another city.
So, as our
California to Italy dinner time chat wound down, I suggested to Mike and Laura
that we all sit down to dinner together some evening in the near future. Now,
we would have to take a 9 hour time difference into consideration, but it’s
doable. I would invite Dana over to my house for the occasion. We would decide
on a menu, and start getting the food ready. Then, we would
fire up the laptops and get ready to sit down and enjoy the meal. Dana and I
would set a place for my laptop, and, Mike and Laura would do the same in Rome.
The stage would be set for an old fashioned, sit-down family meal together via
Skype, in spite of the 64-hundred mile distance between us. OK! Now, who gets
to say “grace?”
Ciao,
MikeBo
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