Entering the Jetson Age

It's funny how people complain about the futuristic things that we were told we'd have, but that we don't have, yet.

Everyone wants flying cars. Hoverboards. Light sabers (although... wait... those aren't from the future, they're from long, long ago).

And then you look around and start to wonder a little about how far we've come.

Dick Tracy wrist communicators? Check.

Moving sidewalks? Check.

Robots that vacuum? Check.

Meals cooked in seconds - or completely replaced by pills? Check.

Bionic body parts? Check.

Video phonecalls? Check.

I've been thinking about that last one for the past day or so, because my parents and I had our first "official" Skype "phonecall" yesterday. We'd tried it out once before, but it was kind of a lark that time. Not a full-length weekly call. Yesterday, though, was the full call.

On many levels, it was very nice. It was good to be able to see them. It was good to be able to show them things around the room as we talked. It was free - which is not a bad thing.

It was also very weird.

Usually, in the course of a 45-minute call, I will wander around the house while we talk. I'll finish washing dishes, or I'll throw in a load of laundry. Can't really do that while on a Skype call on my laptop. (Granted, that would be aided by a smaller device, but my electronics mostly go up in size from my laptop.)

I also admit (though I didn't, yesterday), that I ran to grab a different shirt to wear before I answered their call. I had been wearing my pajamas, and I looked like crap. I seem to remember Jane Jetson having multiple images of herself she could put up on the screen. I may have to work on that.

There were also a few Internet-based issues. Like the fact that a couple of times the call froze or - worse, yet - there was a point where we were out of sync, so mouths and voices weren't working together.

But, overall, I think it's going to be a good thing. I'm lobbying for them to get in touch with people who live at long distances so that they can have free video calls and see the kids who are growing up and all that stuff.

Of course, my parents are currently more technologically advanced than I am, since they have a tablet, and I have a laptop. So at some point I'll need to take my own advice and try some of these new things.

For now, though, I'm going to go back to grumping about not having a flying car. Or a personal teleporter. Or a car that folds up into a briefcase so I don't have to park - that would save me a good 5 minutes every morning, which I'd be able to spend doing something old-fashioned, like sleeping.