Napoleon is credited with saying that an army moves on its stomach.....I think I will be known for the saying....."I move forward on the velocity of my mistakes."
At an age that my mother was quietly winding down I find I am ramping up. And it is disconcerting. Learning the computer is not a sweet little hobby so that I can organize pictures and keep up with old friends....it is the keeper of my business, my bills and my money.
And you need to know I have been measured and I have been found wanting.
The other day I received a payment for services rendered through Paypal. At first I was upset at the enormous charge for simply using Paypal to funnel money from one source to my personal bank account. But then I was annoyed at how long it took for the money to go from my Paypal account to my bank......one day, then another day....3 days? I called and found out I have to request Paypal to send the money to my bank account. I had used it in the past and never needed to do that. But if I was more savvy to the world of commerce I would have suspected it.
One button, just that one request.....and the money was on the way. But according to the brain trust at Paypal it would take another 3 to 4 days. In my ignorance I had added almost a week to the process. Lesson learned, it won't happen again.....but how many other land mines are ahead for my very unprepared self?
A few years ago I was doing some geneology at the family history library. I approached a volunteer worker there with a problem. After we discussed it and I was still unclear she looked me straight in the face and sternly said, "Sister I am 87 years old and I am learning the computer....we are not going backward.....learn the computer!"
What have you learned to do? What mistake have you made that we can learn from?
I'm embarrassed to admit this, but when I first got a phone with a camera in it several years ago, I tried out the camera feature and only got crazy looking pics that didn't look like anything. I consulted my teen daughter and she asked me to show her how I was holding the phone to take the pic. It turns out I was holding it backwards and taking extreme closeups of my eye and face.
ReplyDeleteI hope you saved a picture of your eye....that's the best!
DeleteWell I am not tech savvy at all. I know how to do, what I know how to do on the computer and that is it. I rely on my husband who is a computer geek - but I really should learn more things for myself. I was pretty happy about the fact that I figured out the blogging gig all by myself. (I think he was impressed too).
ReplyDeleteI have an Iphone and I don't know how to put anything on it. My kids do it for me.
Yeah, I could learn but then what would my children laugh at?
I wish mine would laugh. They just mock and leave me for dead
DeleteOuch Donna, to be reprimanded by an 87 year old. Gotta remember though that we learn from our mistakes!
ReplyDeleteouch is right....but I found out how to do what I needed to do that very day!
DeleteI've learned to do a lot of things, but what I'd like to do is learn html and be able to really do cool things with websites, designing and stuff.
ReplyDelete=)
I guess we aren't low on challenges, both fun ones and growing ones...
DeleteI think I like the word "chagrin". It fits me many times when I am unprepared for what is lurking out there to sink my boat. Nothing specific, just those things that hit you up beside the head and you think "where did that come from?"
ReplyDeletechagrin is a great word....I shall use, "Much to my chagrin." a lot
DeleteBut just remember how quickly everything has changed! I asked my 81 year old grandmother in 1980 what she thought were the most impressive things that had happened in her life. She and her family were part of the original pioneers that settled Southern Utah. She repplied, "The day the first automobile came through Cedar City. We all lined up on the street and marveled at that!" And the second thing was, "The day I watched a man walk on the moon!" If things progressed that rapidly in her day, think how much more that is true today. We just have to try and keep up, but maintain our sense of wonder.
ReplyDeleteI wrote the best reply and it disappeared! Oh, my
DeleteI LOVE the attitude of that 87yo woman! She is 100% right. I find I am exasperated with people who whine about using a computer. My 80+ parents were first in line to buy iPads the day they came out! Yes, there is a learning curve, but if you just start doing it, you will figure it out. A computer does EXACTLY what you tell it to do--unfortunately it doesn't make human intuitive leaps--and it does ONLY what we tell it to do, so it can be very frustrating, to put it mildly. (It does help if you are on a Mac instead of a PC though!)
ReplyDeleteOh, my gosh! I love that 87 y/o volunteer! Guess she told us. LOL! I'm always learning ... and it seems that there is more to continue to learn everyday. Onward ho! blessings ~ Tanna
ReplyDeleteDonna, I loved the title of this piece!
ReplyDelete