Too many photos – how to save them

Too many photos - how to save them
I’m worried about all the photos we have. There are way too many and I don’t know how we’re going to deal with them all. I’m not talking about the estimated trillion-plus photographs per year being taken by the 7-billion people worldwide who have cellphones. That is obviously a cause for concern, but I’m worrying ...

Proofreading – is it still a thing? 3

Proofreading - is it still a thing?
Is proofreading even a thing any more? My New Old Self feels strongly that proofreading should still be a thing. “Is it even a thing?” Look it up! Being a thing is totally a thing now, by the way. The phrase, “Is it even a thing?” recently made it into the Cambridge Dictionary. The definition: ...

What should we get for free?

What should we get for free?
“I got it for free!” How we love to boast about this. For me it’s a rare claim, usually born of luck. In contrast to those younger than me, who seem to see non-payment as the norm. This is yet another of the many differences between my generation and the one below. The youth have ...

Lifelong love affair with paper 1

Lifelong love affair with paper
Top of my list of things never to leave home without? (Aside from the obvious, like keys, phone and wallet.) Pen and paper. I always try to be in close proximity to a notebook and a pen or two. This is a habit I maintain, despite the fact that writing on paper seems to have ...

My New Old New Year’s resolutions

My New Old New Year's resolutions
Yet another new year… Instead of sighing and wishing time wouldn’t keep marching on, consider this. Judging from advice on making the most effective new year’s resolutions, it seems that we of a certain age are doing a lot of things right. Which means that we can happily ignore all the exhortations to reinvent and ...

Call me a Luddite but I choose paper 1

Call me a Luddite but I choose paper
My New Old Self was so pleased to receive this response to the recent post on “Paper vs Digital Calendars” – and even more pleased that Fiona Adams was happy for her comments to be posted here. People in my life who are far more IT-savvy than me have often tried to persuade me switch ...

Paper vs Digital Calendars 2

Paper vs Digital Calendars
January used to be my time to buy calendars. Just one wall calendar wasn’t enough. I needed one to contemplate while brushing my teeth and another to check while in the kitchen. In addition to buying a calendar, I would try to score a free one from a local shop or company. My criteria: nice ...

Cherishing the Feel and Smell of Paper 1

Cherishing the Feel and Smell of Paper
My New Old Self recently expanded from cyberspace into the world of hard copy. After launching a blog about getting older, I accepted an invitation to write a fortnightly column in a local newspaper. It was like coming home, to wake up and find the paper waiting on my doorstep, then to open it and ...