First of all, a bit of background: A high school dropout,

stay-at-home mom until the age of 40, I wasn't too

motivated to learn. Then I read the following quote:

"Old Bureaucrat, my comrade, it is not you who are

to blame. No one ever helped you to escape.?

Nobody grasped you by the shoulder while there

was still time. Now the clay of which you were

shaped has dried and hardened, and naught in you

will ever awaken the sleeping musician, the poet,

the astronomer that possibly inhabited you in

the beginning."

(Antoine de Saint Exupery)

I didn't want it to be too late, so I finished high school,

then took a full-time computer course, and finally

business courses. My desire to learn and my self-

confidence grew with each step forward.

I love using computers and�realize that the more

you learn, the more there is to learn. So I thought

I'd take a trip down memory lane:

• My first computer had no hard drive, but I still
  
  thought it was pretty neat.
• The first time using an online encyclopedia - we
  
  were amazed to see pictures of birds and animals,
  
  and actually hear their sounds.
• The first time we connected to the Internet -
  
  hearing someone's voice and responding by
  
  standing in front of the monitor and yelling into it.
• The first family newsletter, complete with clip
  
  art and three columns, written faithfully every
  
  week for almost a year and sent to my family.
• My first emails to my daughter, so much easier
  
  than trying to think of a long letter. Instead I
  
  could send a line or two as things happened.
  
  Emails back and forth, to keep for�future
  
  generations.
• My first chat using a webcam; watching my
  
  grand-daughter lift her new puppy up for
  
  me to see.
• My first multiple chat, trying to talk to daughter
  
  and granddaughter in two different cities at
  
  the same time and trying not to get confused.
• My first time opening up�a computer, with the
  
  aid�of my sidekick mother, and adding a cd
  
  rewritable drive.
• Learning that you should always note where
  
  the screws came from or there will be one
  
  left over.

So many firsts, especially mistakes, too many of

those to count. I learned:

• not to pull the plug out of the monitor end or
  
  you will have to buy a new monitor.
• not to fiddle with your monitor settings too
  
  much or you may not see anything.
• not to continue without saving your work every
  
  so often, unless you enjoy panic attacks.
• not to select public chatting on MSN, unless
  
  you want to see a strange man's face on your
  
  screen saying hello�to you, just before you
  
  quickly turn it off.
• not to buy more software until you at least
  
  try the last one out first.
• not to let your grandchildren print in colour
  
  as much as they like.
• not to expect that your computer will always
  
  do what you want. It often has a mind of it's own.
• not to sit for hours in front of the computer
  
  without a break. No more meals at the desk.
• And above all, not to ever, ever think you won't
  
  learn to tame that machine. No matter who you
  
  are, or how old you are, it's never too late 2 learn!

Creative Home Computing�is a unique online�resource, providing�the help and ideas�to�use computers confidently and creatively�and have fun in the process. Regardless of your age or skill level,� computer literacy will enlarge your world.����

www.creativehomecomputing.com

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