Appreciating Marvels Of Our Time

Great inventions or advances are always going to be subject to an individual's perception. To a mathematician the electronic calculator might be one of the greatest inventions in the world. To a computer geek, great advances might include wireless, or flat-screen monitors. To a doctor, it might be the ability to perform surgery through a tiny incision while using a computer-driven laser scalpel with a camera attached.

Obviously, the computer alone is responsible for huge advances in every possible area--Medicine, science, transportation, communications... You name it. That itself is probably the single greatest thing that has ever happened to us. One might say that it is the most important modern discovery man has ever made as far as its ripple effect is concerned.

But what about the things we take for granted? There are many things that we use and enjoy every day--And have all our lives--That we don't pay any attention to at all. These are things that I still give the nod to every now and then. They are things that I still appreciate no matter how commonplace they are to us. I decided to mention a few here.
  1. Toilet paper - This one is huge--Way out front on my list. Can you imagine not having toilet paper? I don't know of a single variety of leaf that has the slightest amount of absorbency, nor are any of them wise to place against your most tender of private parts. Back in the days of outhouses, I understand that they used corn cobs. I don't know about you, but I don't have any inclination to scrape myself clean with an old, dried-out corn cob. They are also not flush-able. In my mind, toilet paper is a justifiable reason to kill trees. Sure, toilets are a nice invention too, but I can still use a hole in the ground as long as I still have my beloved toilet paper.
  2. Lighters/matches - I'm no Boy Scout--I don't know how to start a fire with anything but a portable flame device. I've seen movies and read books, so I know you can start fires in a variety of ways, but I don't know how (nor to I have the patience or desire) to attempt such a feat. I don't do the stick rubbing thing, and wouldn't spot a flint rock on the ground if I tripped over it. Yes, I respect and admire the little devices that start our campfires, stoves, candles, lanterns, and barbecues.
  3. Light bulbs - Okay, okay--Electricity is the real thing here, we all know that, but have you ever stopped to think about how easy it was to see that thing on the floor before you broke your little toe on it--Just by flipping a switch? Light bulbs deserve credit. They used to get lots of credit, but not any more. Now we're complacent. We expect it's instant glare to shrink our retinas with the mere flip of a switch each and every morning when we slap the alarm clock button. Light bulbs are cheap, they're everywhere, and we don't pay them any mind at all until they don't shine. Me, I love light bulbs. They can offer a pseudo-summer to your winter despair... Just with the flip of a switch.
  4. Fingernail clippers - They're tiny little things, and everybody owns multiples of them (they hardly cost anything after all). Before someone named Chapel Carter invented them in 1896, what did people use? Their hatchet? A grinding wheel at the blacksmith? I hold them in high regard--Ordinary or not. Tweezers too, but that's another story...
  5. Dental floss - I was going to ask what people used to get pieces of barbecued ribs out of their teeth before the invention of dental floss, but then it hit me: Teeth were so bad back then that they could have probably flossed with a piece of rope if they got dinner stuck in a crevice. You have to admit though--Floss is quite the handy thing and we would be lost without it nowadays. Whether you're a proactive flosser or a reactive flosser (that's me) you have to appreciate it. I heard of one guy that actually escaped from prison by weaving dental floss into a small rope. I'll wager that he probably liked floss more than most of us after that.
  6. Specialty foods - Everybody loves bananas. What's not to like? We all love them, and we all take them for granted. We can buy them in any food store, any time. You know where they come from? You don't? Well, you would have to walk to Equador to get a banana--That's about the only place you can get em. There are lots of foods like fruits and veggies that we take for granted because they're always in our stores, and we have no clue where they come from. We even have the nerve to get annoyed when they are imperfect or grossed out when have dirt on them. It doesn't matter that they might actually be grown in dirt.
    What about peanut butter? There's a product we all take for granted too, but nobody knows anything about it. It comes from "somewhere else" but nobody knows how to grow it themselves.
    Salt and pepper are a couple of things that I really appreciate. Although I could learn to live without them, I consider them in high regard. They are very important to me, and are as basic and necessary as water. They can help make crappy food taste tolerable, and can make good food taste really good. I don't want to part with em.
  7. Coffee - I used to not like the stuff, but don't mess with my coffee. I don't drink it other than mornings, but nevertheless--I want my coffee. For the sake of my coworkers, I should have my coffee. Again, it's very ordinary and you can get it anywhere, any time. Just because it's common and plentiful doesn't mean I can skip over it. I appreciate it. It wakes me gently and helps me start the day. Thank you very much, coffee.
  8. Drugs - The slightest little thing wrong and we go to the medicine cabinet. Aspirin, Viagra, cough syrup, or whatever--If it's slightly amiss, we take something for it. Drugs? I love them. They fix me when I'm broken, and sometimes it seems like I'm broken a lot.
I could go on and on with a list like this (and have already), but the point I was making is still there: Don't stop appreciating the little day-to-day things that make our world tolerable to us, and make us tolerable to our world. Just because something has been available for a hundred years or more, it's no less important. Go ahead--Use the comments and add to the list!

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