handwriting – The Hermits' Rest

Your life without a computer: what does it look like?

Now, y’all may be surprised by my answer to this question, given that I have made my career in online activities and teaching folks about software. I made websites when there were no images in them, after all (1993).

First, I’d still be outside a very often, hiking, playing with horses and dogs, and observing plants, birds and other wildlife.

You can see my house way down this hill.

Second, I’d still be knitting, crocheting, doing needlepoint and all that. I’d just have books to learn from and go to the library a lot, just like I did in the blissful 70s and 80s.

I think I’d do many of the same things in person that I now do online. I’m a writer, so nothing will stop me from writing. I used to be a great typist, too. I typed a book on Catalan using three different IBM Selectric type balls, which you young folks have never even heard of, probably. I also have excellent handwriting in cursive, that ancient indecipherable script.

I could also still teach adults. I guess I’d teach at a community college or vocational school. From books. Books are good.

Book I’m reading. I prefer real books, but use the Kindle when traveling. I’m not an auditory learner by preference, so I’m not as fond of listening to them.

I’d create communities, too, just like I used to do with email groups and chat software, but (gasp) in person. I do that now, anyway, or try to. I love being with like-minded people to learn and support each other. Who needs Zoom?

But mostly I’d wander around listening to birds and watching butterflies, just like Snow White or whoever it was that had all the forest creatures flocking around her in a cartoon. Ah, it was Sleeping Beauty.

I think I’d be very happy. I was certainly happy outdoors among nature today. It rained 1.5” overnight, so all the living beings were happy. I even recorded two new birds on the Merlin app, a gray catbird and house wren (both birds I’ve seen before but never recorded). And it was only up to 84° today!

I didn’t hear these vultures, but I saw them, along with a crested caracara and a red-shouldered hawk.

The only sad part was finding a beautiful leopard frog that had gotten caught in the shredder last night when all the front field got all smooth and pretty. But that means there are probably more of these beauties!