Was it really simpler? – Thoughts on Change and Dealing With it

One of the gifts I gave Elaine for Christmas was a new stereo for her car. The original unit played both CDs and cassettes, plus the usual AM/FM radio. The car is old enough that the stereo did not have an AUX input for mp3 players. Who needed one in 2000? On the drive home from Best Buy after having it installed, I got to thinking about how car audio has changed since I was younger.

I recall that car audio as simpler than now, but I really wonder about that. True, there were far fewer wires, and the antenna connections were all very standardized between manufacturers and getting TO the radios seemed simpler as dashboards seemed simpler. But, were they? Or was I just more open to the idea of doing it myself? I dont know the answer to that.

I do recall the ease and joy of putting a car stereo in my car myself, spending a sweaty afternoon sometimes upside down with a gear shift poking me in odd places, making electric connections, running speaker wire (lamp cord works quite well in cars. The insulation is thicker), crawling around the trunk to slip a pair of big Pioneer 6x9s under the back deck, wiring in a small amp to make it play Van Halen the way it was intended to be played; LOUD!! Then came getting used to the new settings which generally consisted of a couple of nobs and which way they turned.

Of course, it wasnt always a full stereo. Sometimes it was simply a cassette deck which is all I had in more than one vehicle, or an AM or AM/FM radio or both wired so one or the other could work. It sounds far more complicated than it truly was, at least to me.

Along with the stereo, I had to buy a wiring harness, a mounting kit and an antenna adaptor. Sounds more involved, but the kid at Best Buy had the old unit out, new unit in, and ready to go in about 45 minutes, even with interruptions. Amazing, if you think about it. But was it more complicated? I dont know about that, but I do know its different.

This is what got me to thinking about the notion that things were simpler when we were younger. Because most every generation believes that things were easier or simpler back when and I didnt buy into it when I was a kid, and Im not sure now. What I do now is that things are different. Sometimes for the better, sometimes not. That change is inevitable and those who adapt are in better shape to deal with life around them. Sounds so simple, but so many people seem hell bent on going back to something that never was, or only existed in a time of limited experience with life.

Different isnt bad, but it can be scary. Different is one way we get forced out of our comfort zones, out of that which is safe for us. This causes stress or anxiety. For me, if I let it, it can cause feelings off inadequacy. Which is a mere step away from self-doubt which is an exit to self-loathing. And self-loathing is the cul de sac of The Crazy…almost like concentric circles of chaos.

How do you deal with change? How do you view it? Do you embrace it, flee from it or just sort of ignore it hoping it will go away? How does it affect you?

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