7 things you did ten years ago
Because Amayzine is celebrating its second anniversary, I am quite in a reflective mood. And the clip from Adele suddenly reminded us of the mobile phones that you had to flip open. It brought me to the post: 7 things you did ten years ago and can hardly imagine doing now.
1. Right, flipping open your phone to answer.
Or clicking up, remember that Sony pop-up? I thought it was so cool.
2. Dialing in for the internet.
“No guys, please don’t use the landline, I’m on The Internet for a moment.”
3. Faxing.
Also something like that. Although a somewhat sensible person wouldn’t have done that ten years ago either. But there was still one in the editorial office of Marie Claire. And occasionally a Fax from Paris would come in. Suddenly that machine would start rattling and humming and a sort of Tyra Mail would arrive at the editorial office. I find it so sad that this was before my time at Marie Claire and that I only have the stories from hearsay...
4. MSN-ing.
What else could a person do back then when WhatsApp didn’t exist yet? And calling, we seemed to do that too back in the day. Talking to each other on the phone. The idea. Tsss...
5. Reading maps.
Yes dear youthful visitors of Amayzine, there was a time before Google Maps. We could introduce a new calendar; BG (Before Google) and AG (After Google). How did we do that back then, you want to know? Well, we had a paper map. One of those things that you could never fold neatly and that you sometimes spread out in the room to figure out what the best route from A to B was.
6. Paying with cash.
Back then you had a wallet that actually contained a card, but mostly cash. Paper and coins. Now you just throw two cards in your small bag and everything seems almost free and life is beautiful.
7. Carrying your Rolodex with you
As a TV editor, the contents of your Rolodex determined your status. For example, I was super proud of John de Mol's mobile number (not that I ever called him, but still, it gave instant status) and that of Martijn Krabbé. Nowadays, all of that is safely stored in our mobile phones.
I can only conclude that life has only gotten better. Except for that Sony pop-up and that magical rattling fax machine...
