Checks, books and movies

Check writing, going to a movie on Saturday night, visiting a book store - all becoming a thing of the past...

What an odd name for an article. What in the world do checks, books and movies have in common? In my opinion? I think all three are on the way out - and quickly. Checks are being replaced by debit cards, books are being replaced by e-readers, and movies are being replaced by...well, just about anything else.

Yesterday when I went to the local grocery store to pick up a few items, the lady in front of me (who was slightly younger than I) had her checkbook out. When the clerk told her the amount owed was $101.13, she vary carefully wrote out a check. After what seemed like forever, she handed the check to the clerk, who then asked for her driver's license. The clerk had to put on her reading glasses to write the customer's driver's license number on the back of the check. The clerk then ran the check through the check verifier. Meanwhile, my ice cream was starting to melt.

It has been a long time since my wife and I have been to a movie where there was more than 20 people in the theater. When the kids were small, we had to buy tickets in advance just to make sure we had a seat for a movie we wanted to see. No longer. What is killing the movie theater industry? First off, bad product. Most movies suck these days. Once in a while there is a good movie. However, between those good ones, there are a bunch of stinkers. Second is the cost. Going to see a sub-par movie on a Friday night (for two people) can cost up to $40 (with snacks). Waiting for just a short while will allow you to watch the same movie on your flat screen TV with Blu-Ray and surround sound. The bathroom is close by, and the popcorn is very affordable.

This morning in the paper was an article about yet another bookstore closing. If you want to get into a spirited discussion, talk to someone who still likes to be a "page turner". Tell that person that books are going the way of the dinosaur, and before long everything will be on computers or e-readers. My wife happens to be one of those "page turners". Even though she does use a reader, she still likes hard copy books. Me - not so much. I don't know if I will ever buy another book (hard copy that is).

So that is my Friday morning take on the future and on the past. I still write checks to pay our bills, although more and more are becoming auto-pay. When we have our window washer out today, my wife will pay him by check. She will write it as her handwriting is much better than mine. Plus, she still likes to write checks.

Yes, even though my wife is still a "page turner", and a check writer, she is no longer much of a movie goer. As for me, I am in the process of giving up on all three of those soon to be obsolete items. And I am just fine with that!