I will not care a bit when all the gas-powered cars are replaced by whisper-quiet electric (or hydrogen) cars, but I will miss revving a motorcycle engine, and even just listening to one idle.

My mama says “children’s imaginations” because children are entertained constantly, they no longer use their imaginations. They do not read, which would help develop their imaginations.

The Words my children currently mispronounce. –I’m going to be soo sad when cajamas becomes Pajamas and nugix becomes Music and pic-a-nick becomes picnic, etc!!!

Southern Culture: As a Southerner born and bred and transplanted NORTH to MN, Frank that’s a very sad assessment of us. Its really disheartening that your experiences and interactions have been so unfortunate thus far. “Good Ole Boys” and Rednecks not withstanding, hold out for some true friends down there –I know they exist. But I have to say I can’t imagine Southern Culture will disappear in my generation. It permeates everything down there still!

It’s questionable whether the following have gone already Freedom of speech, habeas corpus and public service TV.

That “notify me” box is referring to you as the commenter, not me.

You check that to receive emails of follow-up comments. I get them all regardless.

Mark, I think there is a growing concern to recycle and reuse, it just may not be in the Christian realm yet.

Anita, one of the pastors at Bethlehem has a car with an 8 Track player. But I think he only has two tapes to play. If you come across any – mail them to Brad Nelson.

Zach W, love the comment about printed things. It made me smile because it’s so basic and yet I have often felt the same way, since childhood.

Amanda, YES!

Scott E, YES!

Debby, as long as I am alive there will be someone writing hand-written notes! And about letter writing I posted recently; http://globeshift.blogspot.com/2009/01/lost-art-of-writing.html

And to MOM: Agreed. While I miss a few little ‘things’ I miss my mom most of all. I dare say, Aber, you might miss yours too one day.

On a similar note, as much as I think those self-checkout lanes at the store are cool… whenever I go through one and go home, sometimes I realize I haven’t interacted with another human being all day!

We lived for almost 10 years in “the North”, and we came to the conclusion there that people from the North are more guarded in their common interactions with people (this is often interpreted as “unfriendly”), but once they get to know you they they would throw themselves off a cliff for you.

When we compare that to living in the South now as an adult with kids, we see Southern culture as superficially friendly, but almost impossible to move relationships from “acquaintance” to “close friend”. Everyone may wave at you at the traffic light, but you can’t find anyone who really cares about you in the South.

That sounds excessively harsh as I re-read it, and we have great friends down here — people who would give up a kidney to save us if necessary. But on review, all our really close friends are transpanted Northerners. The Southerners we know hold us at arm’s length even though they would never say a bad thing about us — with one massive exception in our former landlord.

This is about to go into TMI, so I’ll leave it there for everyone’s consideration.