🤖 Short Circuit

Calling it like it is:
Technology isn’t getting any easier. Sometimes it seems we need to pull an all-nighter like a 9th grade book report is due tomorrow, just to understand the basics of what’s new. 🧠💻

Meanwhile, these kids are growing up with it when all we had were those dang Tamagotchi’s…. Did anyone successfully keep those things alive anyway??

They’re out here swiping, snapping, zooming, and Face-Timing like they were born with a charger in their hand. Even our 4-year-old can unlock a phone faster than we can unlock the front door. 🤯

We’re not behind… we’re just buffering. 🌀

Today’s tech is moving at warp speed, but that doesn’t mean we have to be left in the dust.
Yes, the password chaos, broken links, and endless “ohhh, what does that do?” moments await.

BUT, if we learn the lingo, navigate the network and adhere to all this social media mumbo jumbo, maybe we can at least stay afloat like water wings among the constant advancements.

Past and Present Technology Evolution 

Once we power through the confusion, we unlock a superpower:
staying connected with our kids and the world they’re growing up in. 🚀

So, let’s rewind for a moment… ⏪

Remember these tech glow-ups 💽🔌

🎮 Gaming: Atari and Nintendo ➡️ Xbox, PS5, and VR headsets augmenting reality
- Controller cords have come and gone, wireless EVERYTHING is here to stay

📼 Entertainment: VHS ➡️ DVD ➡️ Blu-Ray ➡️ Streaming in HD
- Bye Bye Bye Blockbuster, hello binge-watching.

📺 TV: Antennas ➡️ Cable ➡️ Satellite ➡️ Streaming services galore.
- And kids still complain about commercial ads?! 🙄

💾 Computers: Windows 95 ➡️ Apple iMac ➡️ Laptops ➡️ Chromebooks
- From fax machines to AOL’s “You’ve got mail” and the terrible dial up noise 🔇 #Cringe

🎶 Music: Vinyl ➡️ Cassette ➡️ CD ➡️ iPod ➡️ Spotify/Apple/Amazon music apps
- (RIP Napster. You were the rebel we didn’t deserve.)

📻 Listening devices: Walkman’s + boomboxes ➡️ Bluetooth earbuds + speakers.
- Whether it was the orange headphones or a boombox on your shoulder pumping out “Mr. Vain” at full blast…  major 90’s power flex 🎧🔊💪🏼

☎️ Phones: Landlines ➡️ Car phones ➡️ Flip phones ➡️ Smartphones.
- Better have the 20’ cord if you want to take the house phone into the other room!

Pressing “7” four times just to type an “S.”?  You had to earn that damn letter, pre-T9 text 📟
Getting off the couch to change the channel/volume on the tube TV?  Sometimes with pliers 🔧
Gen Z will never understand these struggles. 😂

The 80’s & 90’s were wild y’all… (this may be a topic for future newsletters 😉)
But we’ve lived through multiple tech eras, and made it out (mostly) unscathed. 🏆

Now we’re the confused parents. 🧓👀

You know, like our folks were with JNCO jeans, frosted tips, and stretchy choker necklaces.

Only now it’s the “Skibidi rizz,” “no crumbs,” “slay queen,” “bruh,” “no cap” era

🤷‍♂️ Spend 10 minutes on TikTok decoding middle school slang and you’ll feel like you’re taking a psych course with no degree to show for it. #HowDoYouDoFellowKids 🧢🛹

But here’s the mindset shift: 🔄

Let’s stop dreading the learning curve and start leaning into it.  

We are middle-aged now (gulp 😱) Did someone just yell “speak for yourself!” in the back?
Learning tech beside our kids is one of the best ways to stay sharp, connected, and youthful. 🎯

They’re already making slideshow pitches on why they deserve a sleepover (true story).
So “let them” -shout out to Mel Robbins- show us new tricks on the iPhone camera, set up a filter, or find where our files keep “disappearing” to. 🎩

Their brains are like sponges, soaking up everything, and they’ve got a perspective we’d be smart to tap into. 🧽💡

 Worst Case Scenario

You’re embarrassed how much you still have to learn?  We’re all in the same boat 🛶

The kids teach us words we probably didn’t want to know the meaning of anyway?  🙅🏻
Remember the vocabulary we were exposed to in lyrics at their age… way worse

Dwelling on old technology we grew up with results in carbon dating ourselves? 👴🏻
Our age is no secret anymore, we should learn to accept it.  Everybody get your mf roll on!

You entered what you thought was your password, but gets denied so you click “forgot password” only to get the “you cannot use previous passwords” when resetting it 🤬

Seriously bruh??

Bottom line:

We taught them how to walk, talk, eat, and tie their shoes. 👟
Now it’s their turn to teach us how to swipe, share, post, and say “no cap” correctly. 📲😂

👂 Listen to them.
📚 Learn from them.
🌎 They’re going to make this world even better.

That’s all thanks to you. 🙌

Now That’s B.A.

📐Someone That’s B.A.

Mark Rober │Former NASA & Apple Engineer│13 Billion views│69 Million Subscribers

Permission to Nerd out?  Permission granted!  Not only is he extremely intelligent and makes complex subjects fun, he is pretty handsome to boot.  I know, I know… sorry ladies, he’s taken. But seriously, on the topic of new technology, he is always stretching the limits, trying new things, all while giving a simple breakdown explanation of “how does this work?”

This is a great channel for kids and adults alike.  Say goodbye to your boring old high school worm dissection, and hello to DIY backyard experiments, all on a safety level manageable for families.  Except maybe that time he ran a self-driving Tesla through a Wile E. Coyote landscape painted wall 🥽

📦Something That’s B.A.

CrunchLabs: Where kids & adults learn to Think like Engineers

Piggybacking on my media man crush, he makes it easy to learn simple science concepts right in your living room and shipped directly to your house!  Couldn’t get any easier than that.

You build your own toys with simple step-by-step instructions, play while using the included games and challenges for each assembly, and follow along all the mind-blowing material with exclusive videos direct from Mark Rober and all his juicy little nuggets.

Plans start at $33/month for 3 months, or go all in with a 1-year plan at $27.45/month.
Which calculates out to 2 free months!! 🤓

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⭕ Learning circle

It has come to our attention that numerous subscribers were unaware there are reference source links posted all throughout every newsletter!

These were typically underlined with blue font, but in retrospect may not have been all that obvious as I assumed (we all know how that word goes).  My bad!

From this moment on (starting this week!) we will code these to be easier to notice.
Like this: red underlined font 
This imitates a visual stop sign for clarity. 🛑

While we’re scraping your brain, we want to know your opinions!  Please feel free to share any feedback: good, bad or ugly.  Seriously, we can take it.  It’s nothing compared to the rage filled outbursts we’ve been slandered over the years 🤣

We’d like to ask you for any of the following that suits your situation best:

Which of these topics have been most interesting to you?
What do you want more of in this newsletter?
What’s your biggest challenge right now?
What would make you share this newsletter with your friends/family?

We want to help you in any way possible. 
Love is an open door, and we’re here for you 🥰

📖 Inspirational Quote

“The secret of getting ahead is getting started” - Mark Twain