The Girls in the Back Seat

I owe this one to a reader who shares our dim view of the overuse of techno gizmos. However, she notes, there do seem to be some benefits. She has three young granddaughters and she's frequently driving them from here to there and back again.

Here's her observation: “I've noticed how quiet it is in the car when driving the grand children around. They are always working their phones texting some "VERY IMPORTANT MESSAGE" that when I speak to them, I'm told "just a minute, I'm almost done".

Not that silence from the back seat is a bad thing. At least you don't keep hearing “are we there yet?” And kids cocooned in their tech world can't (or are less likely to) beat each other up.

Unlike years ago (read pre-cell phone days) when our boys were much younger. We had them sitting together in the back seat of our station wagon as we drove from New Jersey to Maine for a two week vacation. We weren't on the road more than two hours before we had to separate them, one in the front and poor Mom in the back with the other.

The dog, by the way, was inside the wagon, not strapped to the roof.

At least he behaved himself.