'Tom Brokaw Reports: Boomer$'

I was disappointed in Tom Brokaw’s recent broadcast about us Baby Boomers. He stated we are “unrealized” particularly in comparison to our parents, the “Greatest Generation”.

In many ways he is correct: we have not achieved world peace, true equality of the genders or races, eradicated poverty, nor lived more spiritual, unmaterialistic lives. Though relatively less important, it is remarkable that the attitude towards marijuana is just beginning to change.

But we did raise our children to be truly color-blind, not at all homophobic and free of gender-role expectations while the Greatest Generation remains somewhat racist, homophobic and tied to traditional gender roles.

We also attended Graduate School in record numbers and became doctors, scientists, engineers, teachers, professors, social workers, journalists, etc. We made enormous strides in medicine, pharmacology, technology and engineering.

We spent our more lavish incomes on larger homes, luxury cars, and for a time in the 80s, on Rolexes. But we also invested heavily in our children’s educations and recreation.

Brokaw is only 6 years older than the oldest Boomers. He might have looked in the mirror for this report or at least re-read his book, “2007 Boom!: Voices of the Sixties Personal Reflections on the '60s and Today”. His college and young adult years were in the 60s and he describes participating in many of the same phenomenon as us Boomers. He did not come across as sanctimonious as he did in this broadcast. He projects himself as very ethical and principled and I am not suggesting otherwise. But, he has enjoyed great financial success, way beyond most Boomers; and he has made the necessary compromises to achieve that success. For someone who believes he is a journalist, he has managed to have an entire career without offending anyone. I do not how any real, truth-seeking, journalist could avoid offending the powerful. He also reveals in the book a remarkably close social relationship with many of his news subjects. A number of well-known journalists and editors have always followed a policy of avoiding socializing with any of the people that could be their subjects.

Watching the Academy Awards a few nights later also reminded me that a generation that may have a self-indulgent need for self-expression has produced so many film-makers, many of whom communicate important messages. Likewise, Rock and Roll is alive and well and many of the artists who spoke for our generation have withstood the test of time and speak to and for our children.

So yes, it is disappointing that more of our dreams in the late 60s and early 70s have not been realized. But we have made important incremental progress on many fronts and have every reason to believe that our children will make further progress.

RETAIL STORE EXPERIENCES

Whenever a retail store chain disappears from sight, and there have been a number of notable instances during this current recession, the consumer is never surprised. The consumer knows what the competitors are doing so much better. One recent example is the closing of Circuit City while Best Buy continues to thrive. Circuit City which was once a great store and company, but under new leadership went right down the tube. Suddenly the shelfs were half-empty and the quality of staff dramatically changed. They employed a wonderful technology, that all stores should have, which allows checking to see if an item is in a particular store; if so, one could place a hold on the item online and pick it up later in the day. If the item wasn't ready for purchase within 24 minutes of getting to the counter, a $24 store credit was issued. I was the proud recipient of at least two of those store credits because clearly there was a lack of execution. It was obvious that no attempt was made to locate the item until I came into the store so, instead of it waiting for me, which is what so attractive about the service, an effort had to be been made to find it which was often difficult, therefore I received the credits.

Best Buy which has been offering a superior consumer experience and appears to be thriving, is not without its flaws. Consistently I find that when I go to the store to buy an advertised CD, the store signing does not reflect the sale price. Therefore I have to wait in line at the register to find out if it is in fact on sale, because frankly I don't intend on purchasing it otherwise. Fortunately, the register is right and the signing is wrong (unlike OfficeMax where the price that rang up on the register was always higher than the signed price) but what an unnecessarily frustrating experience!

Speaking of coupons, I am done with Office Depot. They regularly mail me coupons for $20 off a $100 purchase or $10 off a $50 purchase. I don't own a large business so the only times I have a use for these cards is to make a technology purchase; but when I get to the register, I find these cards do not apply to technology. So they are absolutely worthless to me and now I routinely toss them in the recycling bin.

I recently needed several couplers for cable TV cables. I assumed RadioShack would be the best place to go to but was surprised to find a very limited selection and quantity. I bought what the store had which was insufficient for my needs so I tried Home Depot. I was pleasantly surprised that Home Depot had a much more substantial inventory and was priced substantially lower than RadioShack. I don't see RadioShack having much of a future.

Home Depot though I predict will disappear unable to compete successfully against Lowe's. A most unpleasant experience occurred when I bought some shelving for a closet. When I got home I found that it was the wrong size. I brought it back to the store and was told it had been cut down. I explained that I had not cut it down and in fact bought the item exactly as is from their shelf. The manager told me that until he reviewed the "loss prevention tapes", he was not going to issue a refund. So in "Home Depot land" one is guilty until proven innocent. In the end, the tape verified my claim and I received a refund but nothing for my unpleasant experience so I now avoid Home Depot as much as possible and look forward to more Lowe's in my neighborhood.

The last retailer I will describe is Kmart. I cannot identify a single solitary reason why this chain is still in business and simply cannot imagine it will be much longer.

After all my complaining though, my favorite store is Costco. I try to buy everything at Costco. If you are not a member, join!

I HAVE ONE WORD FOR YOU: THINSULATE

My neighbor said to me yesterday that she had had enough of winter. I realized that I don't mind winter at all... thanks to Thinsulate and Polartec. My winter jacket has a Thinsulate shell, my gloves are Thinsulate, my cap is Thinsulate, and I have Polartec zippered vests and jackets to stay toasty inside. This lightweight and very warm fabric sure makes winter more comfortable, especially since I have to walk my dog in all types of weather.

Additionally, my clients tend to cancel their appointments as soon as a bad storm is predicted, so I rarely have to drive in bad weather. Winter also encourages cocooning which is something I enjoy very much. It allows me to stay indoors, read, listen to music, watch DVDs and putter around the house... all of my favorite things. Summer makes me feel as if I should be on a beach playing volleyball with bikinied girls... an activity very unlikely to happen! Therefore I prefer winter ... as long as I have my Thinsulate and Polartec.

TIME

If you are aged 50 or older like me, you grew up in a world of analog time with sayings that are archaic to our children: "it's half-past, a quarter of and around 8". For 30 years now digital time has been pervasive, starting with the blinking 12:00 on VCRs, cable boxes, microwave ovens, car clocks, watches, computers and of course cell phones which are the main timekeeping device for our children.

As a geek, I've always preferred digital time; instant, precise time. It has been unfortunate that watchmakers have not perfected handsome digital watches; the best looking, expensive watches, like Movados, are analog and though they are good looking, they require study to determine the time and if it is now that I must leave for the dentist; and they often lack day and date information and some even lack second hands. At least digital watches are now large and masculine versus the early ones which were small and nerdy.

We have not had a single analog clock in our home for at least 25 years. I find it curious that the only place my children observe analog clocks are in the classroom. The place that is supposed to prepare them for the 21st century is the one place where there is an archaic form of timekeeping!