what's next?

pigfarmer

tall, thin, irritable
My wallet is disintegrating and I was going to buy a new one and thought - why? Little scraps of paper for vehicle registrations are generally unnecessary. I never have any idea how much cash I have on me because I don't use it much. An rfid protected slip case for a credit card, license with a small clip is all I need. A wallet full of old crap is only interesting while you're sitting on the can.

Rotary phones, then land lines then about ALL phones went away with little notice. Cash, coins, all the associated paraphernalia that goes with that, even armored cars must have noticed the cashless trend. Hell even the people who make the wallets, the little windows for wallets and maybe even the generic people who model for the generic photos in them will be impacted.

What's next? Gas stations ?
 
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August

Metanoia
My wallet is disintegrating and I was going to buy a new one and though - why? Little scraps of paper for vehicle registrations is generally unnecessary. I never have any idea how much cash I have on me because I don't use it much. An rfid protected slip case for a credit card, license with a small clip is all I need. A wallet full of old crap is only interesting while you're sitting on the can.

Rotary phones, then land lines then about ALL phones went away with little notice. Cash, coins, all the associated paraphernalia that goes with that, even armored cars must have noticed the cashless trend. Hell even the people who make the wallets, the little windows for wallets and maybe even the generic people who model for the generic photos in them will be impacted.

What's next? Gas stations ?

Yep we are all going Electric.
 

Standingstones

Celestial
Car technology is changing rapidly. My wife and I just purchased a 2012 Hyundai Santa Fe SEL. My previous Sonata had all the bells and whistles that were available in 2019. This Santa Fe puts my old Sonata to shame. Of course there are options we will never use on this vehicle. There is no key ignition these days. Everything is push button in conjunction with a fob. You can start the vehicle by using an app on your smartphone.

My wife loves the Santa Fe and that is saying a lot. She is normally ambivalent to new cars we purchase. I figure the next vehicle will be totally electric if I make it that long.
 

nivek

As Above So Below
An rfid protected slip case for a credit card, license with a small clip is all I need.

My wallet is a thin one because it's a front pocket wallet...It has a RFID protection pocket for my bank cards, it also has a small fold for cash...I've always used a front pocket wallet, never pit my wallet in my back pocket before...

...
 

spacecase0

earth human
I use an old style cigarette case for a wallet,
it is made of brass and silver plated.
RFID chips can't be read through it.
and I have a limit, being metal, it just will not close if I try and put to much in it.
 

pigfarmer

tall, thin, irritable
Toll booths have vanished. Everything's EZPass. The tech's good enough to catch the plate of people who don't pay. So no more stopping every twelve feet on the Garden State Parkway to throw a few coins into the electric urinal.

Intersections with traffic lights are being replaced with rotaries around here Weird. Actually seem to work but most peculiar to get used to.
 
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Standingstones

Celestial
It is amazing how certain jobs have completely disappeared. Toll collectors in Pennsylvania were gone within a years time. My neighbor across the street is a reporter for the local newspaper. She is barely holding onto her job these days. The newspaper is super thin and is only printed three times a week. No more advertising and classifieds.

A few years ago you could drive down the street and see the rolled up newspaper in most people’s driveway. I no longer see anyone getting the paper delivered these days.
 

pigfarmer

tall, thin, irritable
Music stores gone. Actually, vinyl has seen a resurgence but not like the old days where any mall had a store you could browse through. The record stores that weren't in the mall were the head shops.

All physical media is going bye bye. I don't particularly miss cassettes and 8-tracks and now I'll add CDs and DVDs to that list. No more grab a movie off the shelf in the other room or rent one from a big red box in the grocery store. Stream it.

And while we're at it, big centralized malls with food and entertainment are becoming a thing of the past and more architectural burdens that will have to be repurposed or demolished. Massive megaplex movie theaters with party rental rooms and arcades don't seem to be a destination any more, especially post plague. Better games at home and it's a lot cheaper and cleaner to stay on the couch. And now you can legally sit there and smoke dope while you do that. Not all change is bad.

We still have a couple of drive-ins this year. Would like to take the old 'vette out to one this summer.
 

nivek

As Above So Below
Movie theaters will be the next to go, there's definite cracks and financial strains on them, from what I've read there's not much optimism for a long term recovery of movie theaters...Online streaming is taking off because of covid and it will evolve quickly into the main go to venue to watch a movie...I don't think the theaters will go away all at once, a few may stay open for years to come...

The last movie I saw in a theater was Avengers Endgame, now I don't have any interest in going back to the theater anytime soon, it's easier to stream online...The new Matrix movie is coming out around Christmas time this year, and I did see the other 3 Matrix movies in the theater for the first time, so its possible I may go to a theater to watch the new one too...

...

...
 

nivek

As Above So Below
I saw the original Star Wars in the theater back in 1977, my parents took me and my two brothers to see it, I was 13 years old in 1977...lol

 

Standingstones

Celestial
When I was growing up I never would have thought stores like Sears and K-Mart would fold up one day. One of the long time Sears store is now a liquor store at one of the malls in Harrisburg PA. All the K-Marts have folded and the JC Penney’s are just hanging on. It’s not a good time to be a retailer, that is for sure!
 

pigfarmer

tall, thin, irritable
Barbers.

Not for everyone but for me. Used to go to a small shop and see Ralph, an old Italian guy in his 80s. We'd talk cars. Then came The Plague.

I just sat in the kitchen for 5 minutes while the wifey buzzed me down. I like Ralph but this is the new now, and I ain't got much hair to worry about anymore :)
 

nivek

As Above So Below
I've never used a barber before, I like my hair cut in one particular way and I have gotten out of the chair before and left the building because the person cutting my hair could not do it...Scissor cut, I refuse to let anyone cut my hair using clippers, my hair must be cut using only scissors...I keep my hair medium length and a bit longer on top, always been that way except my time in the Navy...I've always insisted on a hair cut using scissors only, sure use edging clippers around the collar and ears at the end of the haircut session but scissors for everything else...

During this pandemic the woman who used to cut my hair and did a damn great job of it, she closed shop and recently I found another who is doing a good job of it now...Some of these hair stylists cannot use scissors very well, when I was finding a new person to cut my hair I asked up front their ability to use scissors and found one...I tip well too BTW, 20 dollars the price of the haircut, I'll drop another 20 in tip if I like the cut, I don't get my hair cut every week anyway, usually 3 or 4 weeks goes by, sometimes longer before I sit in that chair again...

Anyway, no one touches my hair if they can't do the job with scissors lol, the new hair stylist does a good job with it, not as good as the last person I used to see but she does well enough...

...
 

Standingstones

Celestial
I used to get my hair cut at our local barber. This was thirty years ago. He had a heart attack and then closed his shop. I figured I could save some money and I bought a hair cutting kit. My wife has become quite proficient at cutting my hair over the years. I don’t have much hair to cut anyway, as I have been thinning out over time.
 
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