Fintan Ramblings

I have spent years banging on about how useful computers and internet especially for deaf people. Like most people of that generation they couldn’t see the attraction their answers range from ‘I use the phone’ or ‘write a letter’ to ‘it looks complicated.’

Now living miles away married with kids of my own both of my parents have got a computer, I thought ‘great we will communicate via emails.’
But nope they still ring me grrrrr.

My mum’s not too bad as she knows how to send text messages using her mobile phone (she learnt the hard way as me and my sisters sent her loads of text) but occasionally she rings me. I have a phone that I can turn volume up on, but I still find it hard to understand her some times because she is whispering. She insists my hearing has got worse. At least her husband agrees with me that she whispers. (mum and dad divorced and went on to re-marry)

My dad on the other hand does not know how to turn a computer on let alone send a text message on a mobile. He still rings me every time. He gets his sons (when they are at home) to work the computer or text me on their mobile . His hearing is getting worse by the year and my wife (and probably his wife) find it comedic seeing us trying to have a conversation over the phone.

I had this conversation with a work colleague and most of his family live miles away and they don’t have a computer. He said it would be a lot cheaper for them to email or chat on internet rather than use a phone.
He laughed when I told him about mine and I said, ‘to be honest if I was blind they would write to me.’