Q: Is technology the answer?
A. Of course not. We can’t make any use of any technology until we stop expecting it to save us, and save ourselves. Then we can go hog-wild with all those toys.
I suppose eventually I will expand upon that, but for
now, I want to write about the technology. Are you
perturbed that you get stuck in traffic, your car breaks
down, you’re lost, the meeting you need that ride
back from has an unknown duration... basically, you
can’t communicate away from your clunky keyboard,
acoustic coupler, modem, multiple power lines, etc. You
take the bus, you have panic attacks. You avoid
travelling alone, or you grovel for a hearing person to
make a call. If your spouse is also deaf, you’re
euchred. You have to ask a stranger to call the relay
service first, and go through that rigamarole to tell
your spouse you need that ride now? Well, this all
perturbs me. This why I'm thrilled to bits with the BlackBerry. It's
useful to the double-check the daycare pickup, synchronize the curbside
pickup for carpooling, confirm the plane has landed and a safe flight
was had by all, check whether the interpreter has the correct room
location, and all those other wonderful trivialities that other people
can do. It's become as common in deaf gatherings as in the corridors of
power, and probably as important a technical device as any. You can even
use it as a feeble vibrating alarm clock in a pinch.
PS please don't email me to ask me to quote you a price or ship you one.
I don't sell them and I don't know the dealers where you live.
