I think children should be sold with all new gadgets….including TV remotes, most computers, cell phones, cameras for every thing except taking pictures of family (like the old days), and hotspots.  AND, using the combos of Hulu, Apple TV, etc, etc.

I never have been one to get in line for the ‘first’ model of something, however, I do understand how new stuff can be fun, entertaining, useful, and even lifesaving. I am at a loss as to why these wonderful inventions do not work all the time….and more importantly…the fact that very few people care!

When I buy a frig, I expect it to work each and every day, whether I am there or not. When I buy an air conditioner, a furnace, a toaster, a light bulb, a weed eater, and my favorite, a car…I expect them to run, move, dance, vibrate, sing, freeze, warm, and cool. For the most part, probably 97% of the time, give or take, these do and I am a happy girl.

Items listed in the first paragraph, and many more, I’m sure, are not in that category.  If they work, goody, if they don’t, dang…there is an 800 number somewhere. What I am more amazed about….is that many of us never ‘thought’ of making an item that only worked most of the time…..and that many consumers would stand in line to buy them, fully accepting that fact!

If that isn’t hard to believe, those consumers, knowing full well they were purchasing a ‘maybe all the time…well probably most of the time’ item can hardly wait for the new version to come on the market….with the same ‘well mostly’ guarantee!

Maybe it is because it is now ‘fun’ to ‘fix’…..I am not part of that crowd.   I am old school….when I buy something that does something, I expect it to do the something it is supposed to do.  The more I pay for it, the more I expect  that something to really work!  A car for me, is a good example….If my car acted like my computer, hotspot, or printer…. the air would be blue all around me.  Imagine a new car working most of the time…then you call an 800 number.  My hotspot would not turn on…800 #……my direct tv only works when the sun shines. If it stormy and I need the info….sorry…get the antenna!…oh yes and the 800 #. Customer service knows that the first thing to do is ‘find the reset button’ and reset…that is, of course, after the 800#, the hold, the sales pitch, the request for name, zip code, and secret password, and on and on.  If everyone gives out all the info…what is the point….never mind.

I know new stuff is cool.  It saves lives, offers us a more comfortable way to work and play, and gives us (Hubble) pictures of God’s backyard like we have never seen before. For that I am thankful and in awe.

I guess I am smarting about not being smart enough to invent I phones or pads, or spots. Who would have thunk that inventing, manufacturing, and marketing items that only work ‘the majority of the time’ would be such a hit!

I also love the decision to no longer include a manual with the big ticket items….It is online now….and available 24/7.  That works how, when your computer is down?

I need a drink……