Today I found myself in the company of a bright eyed eight-year-old. While we were casually chatting, I used the term “pay phone”. The wonder in her eyes made me realize just how much times have changed. I took a step back, realizing, a pay phone is a completely foreign object to the children of today.

     I reminisced back to when I was a boy. My Dad would send me to the market with a few dollars for cigarettes and milk, the cashier knew him, so the purchase was never thought to be a problem. I thought about handwritten letters, ten cent stamps and a fresh newspaper being thrown up on the porch. I can still smell the fresh ink on those newspapers. I reflected on riding bikes until the streetlights came on, I thought about Main Street and Saturday nights. But that was a long time ago and times have changed.

     I am now finding myself learning the ways of “The Facebook”, Twitter and Instagram.  I find myself noticing there are no longer newspapers; we have so much information at the tip of our fingers via the internet. With all the advancements in technology, to find a pay phone is rare. I found this gem at the train station in Reno, it doesn’t work but it is nostalgic.