I went to McDonalds last evening with the grandchildren. Nothing new about that but I did notice the McDonalds does have new " menu boards " that are apparently flat screen televisions. Well I suppose the proper term is monitor. That is what you call a thing that looks like a television screen, can display pictures and text but isn't really a television at all. It receives its' input from an outside source. Strange to us senior citizens. They took the guts out of the television and now only sell me the screen ? Need one of those for your computer. The televisions that they do sell have a " tuner " in them but I have no idea what it must look like. I never was a television repair man but knew what the tuner looked like. It was pretty cool, like a round comb. Don't bend it or let it get full of dust and dirt. Now televisions have numerous inputs for an array of other devices to plug into the " screen " or " monitor " whichever it is. Anyway, McDonalds has replaced the menu board with those.
I enjoy the show American Pickers. I thought of them when I saw those new monitors and wondered what they did with the old menu boards. I'm betting the pickers would like to get their hands on them. They are not worth anything right now but surely in the future. I thought to myself maybe I have witnessed the end of another era. Will the old menu boards become a thing of the past ? Dominos pizza has a " monitor " on their wall to tell you when your pizza is ready. They also have an " app " for ordering. I can't help but think what will be left for future generations beyond that though. I mean today we still have a menu board that could be saved. What about a monitor ? You could save it but it would be blank. What's the point in that ?
I did read an interesting article about a chalkboard in Oklahoma. Well actually two chalkboards. A school was undergoing renovations, getting the new whiteboards. The old chalkboards were being removed. As the workers removed the chalkboard they discovered a second set of chalkboards underneath. The writing was still on that second set, preserved there since 1917 ! Fascinating. See, that couldn't happen with a monitor. That is what I am thinking about. A few years back I bought one of those " picture frames " that displays your photos in a slide show. I thought it was pretty cool, a constantly changing picture. Now it sits in the bedroom, unplugged and unused. I suppose if I keep it the great grandkids or someone could plug it in in the future and see whatever pictures are stored in the memory. That might be a cool find. Speaking of which, I just read where they have discovered a picture of Billy the Kid, yes, thee Billy the Kid. It is valued at 5 million dollars. An old tin type.
I do think that most of us are more aware of these changes today then we may have been in the past. There seems to be more collectors today. The difference today being collectors are looking at monetary values. In the past the old folks saved things with an eye towards reusing them. I know my grandfather didn't throw out much. He used the same materials over, sometimes more than once. Nowadays we don't think in those terms, throw it away and buy new. As we replace and upgrade our technologies the old stuff is just recycled, mostly taken apart and destroyed. The thing is, even if we saved our old stuff intact, it probably wouldn't work ten years from now, let alone a hundred. Quick ! How many of you guys could read a 3.5 inch floppy disc right now ? That is without going out to buy the tech to do it with ?
Well I suppose that is progress. I couldn't help but think though, if there is a power failure I can't buy a burger because the cash register won't work. That has been so for quite a while now. Now, I can't even look at the menu ! Progress ? I don't know, a wood fired grill, a register with a crank and a hand written menu sounds pretty good now doesn't it ? I hear people even pay extra to eat by a fireplace. Ah, progress indeed.
I enjoy the show American Pickers. I thought of them when I saw those new monitors and wondered what they did with the old menu boards. I'm betting the pickers would like to get their hands on them. They are not worth anything right now but surely in the future. I thought to myself maybe I have witnessed the end of another era. Will the old menu boards become a thing of the past ? Dominos pizza has a " monitor " on their wall to tell you when your pizza is ready. They also have an " app " for ordering. I can't help but think what will be left for future generations beyond that though. I mean today we still have a menu board that could be saved. What about a monitor ? You could save it but it would be blank. What's the point in that ?
I did read an interesting article about a chalkboard in Oklahoma. Well actually two chalkboards. A school was undergoing renovations, getting the new whiteboards. The old chalkboards were being removed. As the workers removed the chalkboard they discovered a second set of chalkboards underneath. The writing was still on that second set, preserved there since 1917 ! Fascinating. See, that couldn't happen with a monitor. That is what I am thinking about. A few years back I bought one of those " picture frames " that displays your photos in a slide show. I thought it was pretty cool, a constantly changing picture. Now it sits in the bedroom, unplugged and unused. I suppose if I keep it the great grandkids or someone could plug it in in the future and see whatever pictures are stored in the memory. That might be a cool find. Speaking of which, I just read where they have discovered a picture of Billy the Kid, yes, thee Billy the Kid. It is valued at 5 million dollars. An old tin type.
I do think that most of us are more aware of these changes today then we may have been in the past. There seems to be more collectors today. The difference today being collectors are looking at monetary values. In the past the old folks saved things with an eye towards reusing them. I know my grandfather didn't throw out much. He used the same materials over, sometimes more than once. Nowadays we don't think in those terms, throw it away and buy new. As we replace and upgrade our technologies the old stuff is just recycled, mostly taken apart and destroyed. The thing is, even if we saved our old stuff intact, it probably wouldn't work ten years from now, let alone a hundred. Quick ! How many of you guys could read a 3.5 inch floppy disc right now ? That is without going out to buy the tech to do it with ?
Well I suppose that is progress. I couldn't help but think though, if there is a power failure I can't buy a burger because the cash register won't work. That has been so for quite a while now. Now, I can't even look at the menu ! Progress ? I don't know, a wood fired grill, a register with a crank and a hand written menu sounds pretty good now doesn't it ? I hear people even pay extra to eat by a fireplace. Ah, progress indeed.
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