Old School : Life in Analog
Jock Mackenzie | Article and Photos
Old school ? As a retired teacher , I look back to the ’ 70s when I began my career , and I have mixed feelings . Do I miss Gestetner ink ruining my new bell bottoms ? No . Do I wish I still had reams of paper ? No . A wristwatch that did nothing but tell time ? I could go on . No , I don ’ t miss many things . But over my thirty-plus years in education and life experiences that followed , I ’ ve learned to see our world as grey . It ’ s a beautiful shade of grey — neither black or white , not all good or all bad .
I am now in my 70s and , occasionally , I embrace things that are “ old school .” In that spirit , much of this article has been written with a pen , on pieces of paper , by talking directly to people , touching actual objects , and spending time thinking on my own .
At one point ( sadly , I have lapsed ), I wrote ( well , printed ) monthly letters to my daughter ’ s young Wil and Maisy . I chose nicer-thanaverage paper , a good pen , and selected a postage stamp I thought they ’ d like . Getting an actual letter is rare and even I am thrilled to receive one .
While it isn ’ t a paper letter , I also prefer letters on paper — books . Yes , books on tape serve a purpose , as do e-books , but I encourage you to consider my preference . Why ? The feel ( holding one , turning the pages , even the cover design ) and the memory of years and years of good books wellread is special . Sharing a book with a friend creates an opportunity to visit and interact in person — yet another old-school activity that seems less frequent . And daily joy can be found in appreciating an
attractive bookshelf and remembering the journey each title offered .
And then , there are the myriad objects one creates or collects . For myself , I enjoy carving — by hand . I prefer not to use power tools or the increasingly popular CNC machine . Clearly , Computer Numerical Control production is woodworking wizardry , but my perfectly imperfect cribbage boards , cottonwood houses , walking sticks , and golf balls are satisfying because of the journey as well as the destination .
Recently , my son Andrew told me that he thinks of me whenever he sees my hand-carved handiwork hanging from his golf bag . Handcrafted gifts can be extra special .
Yet another aspect of amazing analog adventures is the resurgence of vinyl records . I haven ’ t yet returned to this memorable pastime , so I sought expert advice . Eric Cheroske has been in the music business for years ( gotyoucoveredmusic . com ). He suggested several reasons for the dramatic increase in long play ( LP ) record popularity after noting that , in 2022 , 41 million vinyl records versus 33 million CDs were sold in the United States . He says the biggest reason is the sound — vinyl offers a fuller , deeper , richer quality .
28 | arta . net DREAMS FOR THE FUTURE