Connections and Laughter

Isn't that's all we are looking for in this life: "A little connection and a little laughter."

Connection can from a variety of sources. The above quote is from Bob Lefsetz. We
have never met but I look forward to his email every week. He is a 21st century phenomenon, the curator. Curators assist people with sifting through the myriad of information available to us in a wide variety of formats.

In the 20th century we made appointments to watch TV programs, listen to radio DJs, go to
the movies, and check out books from the library. Now entertainment and culture is all on demand when we want it and the younger generation cannot fathom how we oldsters lived without this convenience. And the older I grow I tend to agree with them. How did we stand the wait?

I do know what we did while waiting in line for the movies or for a show to come on TV.
We talked and observed the world around us. We connected with one another and tried
to make each other laugh. 

Now we are heads down in our entertainment, while our movie theatres, book stores, 
and live TV shows become a thing of the past.

There is a trade off for everything in this life. I'll miss the grand old movie theatres
which played one movie at a time on a huge screen. We would then all have something to
talk about for a while, and maybe even consider seeing again.

Today we see an increasing number of opportunities to outsource our communications. 
I read on the Internet that for some people, eliminating the need for one-on-one contact is appealing, and many young people prefer online conversations instead of face-to-face exchanges. I guess you cannot miss what you have never experienced. There is also no definitive way to measure whether or not this new type of connectedness isn't producing just as many laugh, if not more, than the old style I can easily recall. It's just different, no better or worse is how I view it now. Maybe I'll change my mind as I grow even older.