It’s mind-boggling to me how fast technology changes and how far it’s advanced. We see it everywhere in our daily lives and have become so immune we just expect it.

Take movies. Growing up, the only way I could see a movie was by going to the theater. How exciting that was! Dark theater, buttery popcorn smell, previews, and finally, the big event. Later stumbling out of the theater, blinded by brightness, excitedly talking about your favorite parts.

Drive-ins were even more exciting. Finding a good spot to park, speaker in the window, waiting impatiently for it to get dark so the movie could start. Hoping the mosquitos wouldn’t be too bad.

The first drive-in movie I remember was Bambi. My childless uncle decided to take a bunch of us to the drive-in as a treat. We were so excited – a movie (cartoon!), popcorn, a favorite uncle, and fun cousins, what more could you ask for?

Everything was great until Bambi’s mom was shot. My cousin Sue started bawling. Loudly. My uncle got frustrated and warned her we were leaving if she didn’t stop. Dismayed, the rest of us started yelling at her. She finally stopped and we stayed until the end.

TV became 24-hour-7-days-a-week with more channels so you could always find a movie you wanted to watch. Renting home videos became popular, although it was expensive to purchase the VCR players to watch them on. 

Video sections soon popped up in every grocery store. Scanning the aisles picking out movies with my kids was a highly anticipated weekly event. You could also buy your own VHS tapes so your favorite movies were available whenever you wanted to watch them. Then VHS became outdated and DVDs took their place. They quickly evolved into Blu-rays. 

Cable TV became the thing to have – more movies, all the time! Then it lost popularity with the introduction of streaming services. Today we can watch anything, any time.

In less than 50 years we’ve gone from movies being seen as a special occasion to aimlessly watching them 24/7. Watching movies is no longer the ‘event’ it used to be. 

While my kids can’t understand the anticipation I felt for Saturday morning cartoons, their kids will never know the anticipation of having to wait to watch anything. Technology has taken the magic out of movies, and honestly, watching television all together.