The Information Age.

[Eamonn]

When I was a young Lad I had several friends that didn't have a home phone.

When I became a leader a few years later just about everyone had a home phone. A Lad joined the Troop and you took his name, address and phone number.

The Scouts joining the Sea Scout Ship have a home phone, Cell phone, E-mail address and i seems that each member of the family has a different E-mail address and a different cell phone number. Both parents work so they have work phone numbers.

I chuckle at some of the Scouts E-mail addresses.

I have a Dancin_ Gumby, pawprintz,Swordsman, Scoccerstar, a starstupidboy, and a basketballbud10020.

Eamonn.

[Kahuna]

What? You don't have their IM addresses, too?

[Trevorum]

I think it is more the "connections age".

 

For example, last night I recieved our family's cell phone statement. My three teen agers had racked up more than 2500 minutes in a single month! #1 son had more than 90 calls on a single Saturday! I think when I was 16, I might have made one phone call per week (and way back then, we had to hold the tin can real close to our ear!).

 

But that's not necessarily bad. Technology has made it easier to communicate with people, to exchange ideas, to build relationships. Just like we're doing here.

 

(Still, I'm glad our family has a group plan with roll-over minutes!)

[Eamonn]

Kahuna

Eamonn IMing might be more than they could manage.

Trevorum

Your lucky a friend of mine was telling me that his daughter ran up a $1,500 cell phone bill.

As I write OJ is annoying Rory (the golden retriever) with a Christmas card that quacks Jingle Bells like a duck!!

Eamonn.

[hops_scout]

You wouldnt want to see Eamonn IMing;)

 

I'm not a big fan of IM either but I do use those programs sometimes.

 

I got a cellphone last spring-hand me down from my sister when she got a new phone. I have the prepaid variety.

[Eamonn]

Hey Hopper,

While "the prepaid variety." Might not be as cool as some of the phones that are out there, they do help avoid a lot of unpleasantness.

You wouldn't believe the number of parents I know who fight with their kids about running up big phone bills.

I see that some of the new phones can show movies!! Here I am buying TV's with bigger and better screens and all the time I could have gone with a 2 inch screen.

I wonder what it costs to watch a 90 minute movie on your cell phone?

Eamonn.

 

[Trevorum]

Remember Dick Tracy's two-way wrist radio? Wow, that sci-fi gizmo was pretty far out there wasn't it?!

[scoutldr]

I recently saw the perfect cell phone for kids without jobs (that is, not paying their own bills). It has 3 buttons for dialing out...Mom, Dad and 911. It can also be programmed to receive calls from only certain numbers. That solves the dilemma for parents who insist that "they NEED a cell phone in case of emergencies", and then gripe about a $1500 bill because their kids are out of control.

 

I carry a cell phone only because we have elderly parents who are home alone while we are at work. I make maybe 6 outgoing calls a month, usually to say I'm caught in traffic and will be late getting home. I hate phones. Unfortunately, my DE thinks that we should spend every evening trying to call unit leaders who won't respond to an e-mail. Don't get me started.

[OldGreyEagle]

If you aren't on MYSPACE.COM, you are so way behind

[hops_scout]

E, I love my phone because I don't pay the bill on it. The main reason I have it is for getting in contact with parents when needed. It gets used for other things too, but it costs about 20 bucks every 2 or 3 months. And hey, the phone only cost 40 bucks to start with! Luckily, it hasnt been destroyed yet even though it has been run over by a truck and dropped on concrete many times. Maybe I should have tested its durability by dropping it off the tower this summer;)

[Eamonn]

Hopper,

Pre-paid phones are real big in the UK.

Virgin phones are almost the norm.

OJ is hard on phones! I don't think he was bouncing off the cope course.

But he had one on his Santa Wish List. So this will be number 3 or 4.

Him and his buddies are into the MYSPACE.COM

I use my phone a fair amount. Rory and I spend about an hour or so a day walking and I'm not so dumb that I can't walk and talk at the same time.

Eamonn.

[scoutldr]

Just a word to the wise...if your kid is on Myspace.com, take a minute to log on and scope it out. I did this with my niece and her boyfriend, because my sister suspected she was into sex and drugs. Turns out the boyfriend had illegal handguns (visible in the picture) and was engaged in hate and gang activity. Also, a lot of personal and obscene information was posted. You would be amazed at what you can find out about your kids and their friends. If your kids are under 18, you have an obligation to know what they are doing on line.

[Eamonn]

scoutldr

I have mixed feelings about what you see as an obligation.

I know that my kid isn't by any means an Angel. But he has earned my trust.

We hear the words of the Scout Law and I think that if we believe that a Scout is Trustworthy we have to put our money where our mouth is.

I have looked over his shoulder when he has been on line and on the myspace site. Not to spy on him, but because it was there.

I admit to being a little surprised at the provocative poses of some of the girls. Nothing over the line but very close to the line.

I was too lazy to keep a diary when I was a Lad, but I kinda think the Myspace site is a little bit like a diary.

Still I happy that your intervention may have prevented something bad from happening.

This may well be the Information age, but they still don't send kids home from where they were born with a parenting manual.

Eamonn.

[SR540Beaver]

I'm not familiar with MYSPACE and the internet filter here at work won't let me get there. It sounds lot like XANGA. My son and just about everyone he knows has a XANGA page. I take a look at his occasionally. He know what he can and can't put on there and he has not let me down yet. I have found some posts from friends that I didn't approve of and had him remove them.

 

Cell phones. I don't want o go back to being without one. That being said, I want it to make and recieve calls. I don't need to take pictures, watch videos, play games, listen to music, access the internet, text message, etc. I just want to talk.

[Trevorum]

When my kids turned 14, I got them each a cell phone. They thought the phone was cool, but it actually gives me the reins to check on them any time, anywhere. When #1 son was on summer camp staff, he learned to be responsible for his own weekly laundry -- and of course, he washed his phone! It was fried. But when the summer was over, he had saved up enough to buy a new phone.

 

Anyone remember party lines? When I was in kindergarten, we had to wait until the other person was done with their conversation before we could make a call. Imagine!