Observations

Ok, here are some random observations I've made over the last few days.

Old people and basic technology
Before I start, I will be using the term 'old people' a lot. This might not be a politically correct term but I don't know what the correct term is so sorry if it offends anyone.

The other day I had to make a trip to the bank. In front of me there was a queue of five or six people, and two more people being served at the desks. I must have been in there queueing for about fifteen to twenty minutes whilst those ahead of me got their problems solved by the clerks. The woman directly in front of me was an OAP (a fresh OAP, not a really old one) and when her turn finally came, all she wanted to do was withdraw £40. Now, she could have saved twenty minutes of her life by simply using the cash machine outside and finishing the job in seconds. I bet if someone suggested this to her, her response would be that she prefers the good old-fashioned way and someone at a desk can give her the money. Or something like "I don't like machines".

I can fully understand why old people have an aversion to using machines. They weren't brought up with machines and why should they start using them now? I'll tell you why you should. The world is changing. Technology is the way forward whether you like it or not, that's the harsh reality. Well, 'harsh' is actually the complete wrong word for it because technology makes life better. It should be embraced, not avoided, and this is the simple concept that old people should take on board.

I want to make it clear that this is not me venting a frustration. It is illustrating a competely logical and practical point. This will probably be interpreted as me having a dig at geriatrics, when in fact it is the complete opposite. If I explain the above situation to somebody in person they will probably say "oh let her be, she's old and not used to machines". That is not a helpful thing to say. But if just one OAP reads this (I know they won't but hey) then at least they'll have read an important lesson and there's a small chance that it will have helped their life.

This has become a bit abstract now, but this fear of technology is something I encounter every day at work. At the airport I can understand it a bit more, because the passenger has forked out a lot of money for their ticket and should be able to get checked-in by a real human being at a desk if they want it (having said that, that option is not available at Terminal 5). However, the people who use technology and check-in online will always win. They will get to pick their seats before those who choose to check-in at the airport. Fact. So it's no use complaining to me at the airport that all the seats have gone and that British Airways is the worst airline in the world - if you'd used the options made available to you by technology (just like most people) then all would have been hunky dory.

One more thing. I'm not talking about brain surgery here. The examples I've used (using a cash machine and checking-in online) are two extraordinarily easy tasks to accomplish. So come on old people (and technophobes) - get with the programme.

Dithering
I was in a supermarket the other day and was waiting patiently in the queue at the checkout. The woman in front of me was being served. When the guy at the till told her the bill, she looked up as if she had forgotten where she was and that the idea of actually having to pay for the goods was completely alien to her. Then the painfully slow process began of reaching for the handbag, rummaging through the handbag, withdrawing the purse, getting a fiver out, realising that wasn't anywhere near enough to cover the cost, getting the credit card out, inserting the card into the machine, struggling to remember the PIN number, and finally completing the transaction. This is dithering, and it's poison to the human race.

Fair enough she might have had something on her mind or whatever, but let's just assume that she was in perfect mental and physical state. She was totally unprepared for the task that she knew was coming - paying. Her epic struggle to come up with the money wasn't just a trial for her - it was for everyone in the queue. At the outset I was pretty frustrated, but as the debacle continued I found it increasingly amusing. I looked behind me at the queue however, and there was a long line of extremely irritated people. Heads were being shaken, tuts coming out of every mouth. Deep sighs in between. A young child was getting restless in its pushchair and I don't blame it. By the time the woman had finally completed the transaction and packed everything into her trolley, people didn't know whether to laugh or cry. I heard both chortling behind me and a lot of bitter grumbling.

Message to all ditherers in situations similar to this - please, please just spend two seconds on thinking ahead of what is about to happen.

Days off
Something completely different. Just for the sake of it, I'm going to start giving a star-rating to each set of my three days off. So, starting with the last three...

Monday night: I finished work early and went to the tennis club. Good friendly barmaid and a reasonable group of people turned up (Loz, Covey, Lauren, Simon, plus Hodgson and McDermott randomly). Rating: 4/5

Tuesday: Went to gym with Daz. Then went to Arsenal game. London was dead afterwards though. Rating: 3/5

Wednesday: Very boring during the day. Ended up at the Victory in the evening with Gareth and Daz which saved it. Rating: 3.5/5

Thursday: Sore throat during the day. Woodman that evening with Loz and Daz. Rating: 3.75/5
Overall star rating: 14.25 / 20 = 71%

Reflecting on this post
Reading this back, I sound like an exceptionally grumpy bastard.... I'm actually in an really good mood!!

Thanks for reading