My car is smarter than I am.

Today I came home and unloaded groceries and went inside. When it started to rain, I went back out to close the car windows, which I always leave down a half inch or so, just to keep some fresh air circulating. I reached inside with the key and turned the ignition just enough to activate the electronics but not enough to start the engine. Then I pushed all the buttons to put the windows up. Then I noticed groceries in the back seat that I'd overlooked before, so I got them out and took them into the house and was putting them away when I thought maybe I should go back out and lock the car door.

I used the buttons on the side of the driver door, but nothing happened. I knew the code. I tried again, and again nothing happened. The door wouldn't lock. I thought, okay, I'll lock it from inside. I opened the door and reached in and hit the lock button. Uh uh. It wouldn't take. The doors wouldn't lock.

I was getting very frustrated -- over the role of technology in our lives, etc. -- when I happened to see the key ring glinting in the door light. The key was in the ignition, turned on.

By morning, the battery would have been dead, and I would have to get a jump, maybe a tow.

My car saved me.

And isn't that more than we've ever been able to expect from our tools and appliances? Our ancestors used hoes and axes and needles and thread and never got any constructive feedback from any of them. We live in an amazing world that will look quaint a hundred years from now (if not sooner), but that right now is as exciting as life on earth has ever been.

In fact, I understand that my smart car is getting smarter all the time and may someday be able to drive me by him/herself while I lounge in the backseat, sipping mai-tais.

I can't even begin to decipher what has happened with phones and cameras and internet connections. You who use them know how profoundly they've changed your lives. And you know that there are more innovations to come!

And look at what's happened to televisions. You can't even give away a tube TV these days, even if it's big and in good shape. Every set is flat screen now. Thinner but with an even bigger and better picture. (Just like computer monitors.) What's not to like? And the price is coming down as good old American capitalism kicks in. Of course the future holds lots more improvements, but I'm pretty impressed by what we have now.

We are living in the most technologically advanced society ever, so let's look around and marvel at what we have and can do compared to what our parents had or could do. Maybe our kids will live even more exciting lives, but I think we're living a pretty extraordinary one right now.

I'm from the old school of printed books and home phones and face-to-face conversations, but I can still appreciate being able to get money from my bank account just by driving through and inserting my card. That's my kind of magic!

As my grandmother used to say, "What won't they think of next?"

I can hardly wait.