In the course of my lifetime, the ultimate technology has gone from hi-fi to wi-fi. For you youngsters out there, hi-fi stands for high fidelity which was a big deal in the ‘50s and ‘60s. Hi-fi sound essentially is sound with minimal-to-no distortions, scratches, and background noises which were common on recordings before World War II. For a cultural reference, listen to “I Need Your Love Tonight” by Elvis, when he sings, “I got the hi-fi high and the lights down low.”
For you oldsters out there, wi-fi stands for nothing! Well, the wi stands for wireless, but according to Wikipedia (that’s the modern version of Encyclopedia Britannica) wi-fi is “a trademark name and was stated to be a play on the audiophile term Hi-Fi.” Yeah, I didn’t know that either until I just looked it up.
I remember scratchy 78 rpm records. I remember when the phone had a cord, weighed 12 pounds, and was black. Everyone’s phone was black. I remember when seat belts were an option in cars. But I can’t remember what I had for breakfast . . . It doesn’t matter. Really, this post was just an excuse to listen to Elvis.
Austin Gisriel 
Here’s another that will date you, Austin. How about rotary telephones? I can remember how interested I was when I first encountered a real live push button phone. I was on a temporary assignment for IBM in Boca Raton, Fla, in my managers office. Oh, goshengolly, what DID I have for breakfast today? By then, of course, one could get a phone in colors more exciting than black.
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Rotary phones will live on whenever we speak of “dialing” the phone! I wonder how many are still in use?
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Uhh thank ya, thank ya very much! To answer your question about Rotary phones, there is one in my house, still alive and well! we still use it every once in awhile! I guess Sherriff Taylor and I still have something in common!
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Wow! Do you have an Amana Radar Range instead of a microwave?
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Are you kidding me?? Microwave ovens are out now? I must not have gotten that memo!
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Maybe because you looked for a mimeographed memo.
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Say Hi – Fi to a kid today and you’re bond to get a High Five!
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Or he thinks it’s a new kind of drug.
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