Living Life in Analog

January 2025

By Richard Fleming

Photo courtesy of Florencia Viadana

While different generations inhabit the same physical spaces, we live in dissimilar worlds. For old folks, our language, priorities, thoughts, social engagement, cultural interests, and modes of communication vary significantly from those of the younger generations. Our daytime activities and nighttime interests share little in common with people born a half century after us.

I do not mean to exaggerate or exacerbate generational distinctions. We share much in common. We are all members of the same society. We enjoy the closeness of family and warmth of friendship. We eat similar foods. Most importantly, young and old alike aim to find meaning, value, and love in our daily lives.

But the generational divide can be profound. As I venture further into old age, I increasingly recognize a prominent feature distinguishing the way old and young folks interact with the world. Old people tend to live much of their lives in analog ways. Young folks typically live their lives digitally. This observation may seem obscure, so let me delve into the phenomenon, drawing on examples from my own life. While I suspect many of my examples will resonate with other seniors, every old person lives their own life in their own way. And your experiences may be vastly different.

*    *    *

Let me start by celebrating the wonder of paper. In my life, I rely heavily on paper, the ultimate analog platform. My preference for paper encompasses many realms. I like to read paper books more than digital ones. I find it comforting to hold a physical volume. I love the feel of paper in my hands; touching a screen feels removed and impersonal.

When I have receipts I need to retain, for example after purchasing an appliance or keeping track of a warranty, I always obtain the information on a piece of paper. If these records are sent by email, I print them up at home. I then put the physical documents into manila folders in my gray metal filing cabinet, a useful analog device which has performed its job – keeping papers organized – flawlessly for the past fifty years. I always know exactly where to find documents when I need them. Easy peasy. I do not keep records in digital format in “folders” on my computer. And the idea of storing important documents on my phone makes me shudder.

When I’m trying to cook something new, I invariably prop open a cookbook. If I find a new and interesting recipe on the internet, I print it on paper so I can easily see the instructions as I fumble my way around the kitchen.

When traveling, it is so much easier to print up the ticket or boarding pass rather than searching for it on my phone. Ditto for going to the movies. I just pull the paper tickets out of my pocket and presto, entry accomplished.

I recently found out there are young people who have no clue what a stapler is. They have never seen one. They have never used one. When you are living your life digitally, staplers have no utility. For myself, I use a stapler several times a week. If I didn’t, the individual pages of documents I need to store and recipes I want to use would scatter all over creation, making my blood pressure shoot up.

*    *    *

Let’s look at other aspects of living life in analog. Home automation – the ultimate manifestation of a digital lifestyle – deserves review. Over the last three years, we had to replace several aging appliances, including a washer and dryer, a refrigerator, and a coffeemaker. In each case I was encouraged – by the appliance itself! – to connect the device to the internet so that it could be accessed and controlled “more easily.” Hello? What were they talking about? Naturally I declined each offer. What benefit could possibly accrue from using my phone to start a washing machine or setting the temperature on the refrigerator? I can answer that question easily without searching the internet: none. I see no virtues to “smart lightbulbs.” I see no merits to using Alexa or internet-connected home “pods.”

My wife and I still have a landline telephone. We do use cell phones. And as we learn more of their features, we gradually use them more than the landline. But there is a reassuring comfort to having a landline. And yes, it has an easy-to-use answering machine built in.

I love getting together with friends for coffee or lunch. Seeing each other in person is more rewarding than interacting through exchanging text messages in a – what is it called? – “chat group.”

At Christmas, our analog life expands. My wife and I send physical holiday cards to our friends and family. We get Christmas-themed postage stamps at the Post Office and affix them to paper envelopes. Then we drop the cards into an analog container known as a U.S. mailbox. We give physical presents to our kids and grandkids. We bake Christmas cookies, relying on paper recipes of course, and hand-deliver them to our neighbors.

When a “small planetary alignment” occurs, an amazing phenomenon Earth is graced with this month, I enjoy looking up at the sky to see Mars, Venus, Jupiter, and Saturn all in a row. I know I could see images of this planetary parade on the internet or social media, but viewing it with my own eyes is magical.

These are just a few examples of living life in analog, and how it differs from living life digitally.

*    *    *

Digital phenomena are characterized by bits and bytes, strings of ones and zeros, computer code. Digital methods are intrinsically more efficient, abrupt, edgy, straightforward, and quantitative. Analog phenomena are, by their very nature, more contoured, rounded, and impressionistic. Analog methods are gradual, somewhat inefficient, nuanced, and qualitative.

Though I find that analog living comes more naturally to me, I want to say in closing that I am not anti-digital. Some aspects of digital living can be useful. I frequently send text messages and emails to friends and family. Digital communication has its uses. It can more be efficient than phone calls. Asynchronous communication like emails and texts can avoid disrupting real time, analog activities that others are engaged in. I rely on calculators to balance our bank accounts (though I still know how to add and subtract using pencil and paper). I use the internet to search for information and read newspapers. I have learned how to stream music and TV programs. But my default comfort zone is largely analog.

This review has only scratched the surface of the differences between analog living and digital living. I cannot say one is more virtuous than the other. Young people grew up in a digital world. For them, digital methods are intuitive and automatic. Cell phones, apps, QR codes, ApplePay, social media, internet-connected homes – all have been integral to the younger generation from their earliest years.

Old folks came of age in an analog world. We are comfortable and confident using analog methods. We grew up with newspapers tossed on our doorsteps, landline phones, LP records, and navigating road trips using paper maps. We are slowly learning how to live life digitally, but it takes time to grasp these new-fangled techniques, and they can be complex and anxiety-provoking.

Hopefully, over time, we old folks will gain more confidence in incorporating the benefits of digital living into our analog lives. Our futures can become fuller if we do so. And hopefully the younger generations will learn that analog living can be a valuable complement to the rapid pace of their digital existence. There is virtue in learning from each other.

If you enjoyed this post, please consider sending it to friends who may be interested or posting a link to your social media feed. Also, if you are not yet a subscriber, it is an easy way to be notified of future posts. Just enter your email below. Then check your email for a return message that requires a confirmatory click to complete the subscription process. Subscriptions are free and no advertising will come your way.