The Internet is ageless

So, if you read my last post about ethnocentrism, you will notice a curmudgeonly commenter. That's my mom.

This post is for her.

Mom says, "I don’t think there are too many [senior citizens] out there who are 'hip' to the wide range of fabulous things you can do on a computer."

Perhaps not too many, but there are some. I conducted a universal blog search, knowing if I could find one good blog by an older person, all I would have to do is scan the blogroll to find more. (Rule #1 for blog newbies: start small, scan blogrolls, and slowly build out your network. A "blogroll" is simply a list of favorite blogs, typically located in a sidebar.)

As I suspected, there are some "hip" seniors out there:

• "Elderblogger" Ronni Bennett is a retired news producer who now writes the nationally recognized Time Goes By blog about all things related to aging.


• On Bennett's blogroll I found My Mom's Blog, the virtual home of "Thoroughly Modern" Millie Gardner Garfield, one of the oldest blog authors in the United States. My Mom's Blog is a repository of remembrances and reflections with occasional discussion about the impact of technology on life, written from the distinct vantage point of an octogenarian. In her Oct. 20 post, for example, she ponders Communication Yesterday and Today. As a public service (of sorts) Millie and her videographer son have archived a collection of I Can't Open It home videos, billed as "ethnographic research into the problematic design of consumer products from an elder video blogger's point of view." Delightful.


• How do I trust Millie Gardner's Garfield's claim to be one of the oldest blog authors in the United States? Well, her blog links to The Ageless Project, a fascinating site that aims to prove the diversity and agelessness of the social and participatory web. From the home page: "If you have a personal, non-commercial website (that's original) and don't mind sharing your date of birth, you might help us prove the point." Anyone may submit their site to be considered for inclusion.


• For more ideas about seniors and the blogosphere, read Senior citizen bloggers defy stereotypes from USA Today. The article quotes the Oldest Living Blogger as well as Gardner Garfield and Joe Jennett, creator of the Ageless Project.

To sum up, this week I welcome Millie Gardner Garfield and Arthus to my blogroll.

Millie is "82 years young," and Arthus (a pseudonym) is a 14-year-old in New England who is making a splash in edtech circles with his blog, Newly Ancient.

The Internet is truly ageless. What do you think?

technorati tags: blogs senior citizens internet

The Internet is ageless