Pocket calculators came in around late high school and they were mega expensive. I could live for half the year on the price of something that would now be considered a really crap give away. I didn't get one until I'd almost finished University. I still have it and it still works too.

Then there were computers. My younger brother did computers when it was all punch cards. There was always confetti round our flat and on one notable occasion he tripped on the hall rug and spewed hundreds of cards all over......BEFORE he'd numbered them! I don't suppose many younger people would even know about those cards. They were used to program computers before floppy discs came in. And floppy discs really were floppy to start with but compared to cards they were wonderful. I might add that I wouldn't have dared to even go near a computer - they were for specialists, and that probably accounts for the phobic feeling I get every time I try something new on this machine. I still remember the absolute awe we felt when a friend bought an apple 2 while on a trip. It even played chess!

I went to art school about this time and became a potter for many years but I did take a course in business computers eventually. Our screens were a beautiful :) shade of green. After a day of using them every white surface looked pink. Amber screens came next and they were better and finally the sort of screen I use now in full, glorious colour.

I was 35 when I first got my own computer but it was such fun even without the internet. My husband ran a bulletin board for several years and that was lots of fun. That died when the internet arrived properly. I don't regret that too much because the internet is so much better!

I'm now wondering what will come next. I hope it will be green and sustainable whatever it is.