Losing the Technology War

Those who know me well are aware that I have an ongoing war with technology; one in which I often lose battles. I frequently have to call our son for help with what appear to be very minor issues. As times goes by, you’d think I’d get better at solving my own problems in this area, but sadly, I’m not.

For example, earlier this winter I had a scuffle with my car and though I prevailed, I did so only with the assistance of my husband. It all started when I wanted to go into town to put a teddy bear or two in the Hospice gift shop window. Not to worry — I was following all the social distancing guidelines! The store was not open at the time, but was participating in the “go find a bear hunt” activity that happened in some neighborhoods and downtown. I went into the deserted town, wiped down the door handle, grabbed a few teddy bears from our storeroom, and placed them in the window. Then I locked up and posted a picture on Instragram, planning to go straight home.

Except when I got in the car and pressed the keyless ignition button, the car did not start. I heard clicking noises and lights all over began to flash. Messages appeared on my dashboard saying things like “open and close passenger window” and “theft deterrent system error.” I got out of the car to look at the battery, which did not help explain if it was a digital or mechanical issue. I tried to get back in the car, but it had locked. My remote would not unlock it. It wouldn’t open the trunk. Pushing it repeatedly made the lights inside the car blink frenziedly, but the door wouldn’t open.

I did the sensible thing and called my husband who drove in to rescue me. I had time to ponder my predicament. Was the battery dead? Was the digital system broken? Was God telling me to stay home? I dreaded the idea that my husband would arrive and the car would start immediately because I was inept. I tried to read the owner’s manual, but discovered it was written by the same people who write instructions for assembling furniture, rendering this task useless.

Matt arrived, charged up the battery with this truck, and saved the day.

A second battle with technology happened during the stay-at-home, while I was cleaning out our junkroom. This long overdue task resulted in the creation of piles of boxes and bags filled with (a) items for donation, (b) items for the trash, and (c) items I thought other family members might want. I was going to take a picture of those last items to send to various nieces and nephews when the camera function on my phone froze.

               Having had some training from afore-mentioned son, I went to the internet and searched what to do. It was fairly easy – just reset my settings. After a few trials, I was able to do that and – voila! – my phone camera once again functioned well.

               I snapped several pictures of stuffed animals and sent them to loved ones. Slipping my phone into my pocket, I continued sorting stacks of items. I heard the front door bell. Our front door is very old and the doorbell itself is dated in the 1860’s. It’s a metal half dome with a crank on it. When you rotate the crank, a lovely little sequence of peals ding throughout the house.

               Our front door isn’t used much, typically only by delivery people. I heard the dinging and jogged down the stairs to the door. Looking out, I saw no one and no packages on the stoop. I jogged back upstairs and resumed work.

               A few minutes later, the bell chimed again. I walked down the stairs and looked out – nothing. I prowled around the house to each of the other doors to peer out. The dog was snoozing quietly and no one appeared to be around.

               I trudged up the stairs and resumed my sorting. The tingle of the bell sounded a third time. This time, I picked up my baseball bat and stomped down the stairs. Something was afoot!

               While I was staring out the door window, the chime sounded again, but not from the door. It was my phone!  The pre-set text notification sound is the same little chime as our antique door bell.

               And that’s when I realized that I had lost all my preset notifications.  I had to stop my sorting and boxing and reset every one of them. Of course, first I had to go the internet and look up how to do that.

               Technology – 2, Sue – 0. I’m already prepping for my next scuffle with technology.

2 Comments

  1. Lori

    Thanks for the laugh! I totally understand where you are coming from.

    • Susie

      🙂 Glad to make you laugh today!

Leave a Reply to Lori Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

© 2024 Susie's Snippets

Thanks for readingUp ↑