The Moment I Noticed the World Changing

First, Zoe is just fine.

But a couple of weeks ago we were at the doctor’s office making sure. When the doctor ordered some standard lab tests we dutifully trooped down to the lab on the first floor. After a few procedures we were back up on the 3rd floor waiting to see the doctor again to review the results. As we waited, I downloaded a bubble-wrap app to the iPhone for Zoe to play with. My wife, who to date had found my iPhone obsession somewhere between annoying and obnoxious, listened to the sound of popping bubbles for about .30 picoseconds before she asked politely, “Can’t that thing do anything useful?” Looking over at our busily distracted eight-year-old I was thinking that it was already pretty useful.

But, here’s the interesting part.

My wife asked, “Can you bring up your healthcare site on that thing?” “Sure,” I said, eager to prove the worth of my purchase and quickly thinking up strategies to get the iPhone back from Zoe. Shortly, with the promise to download the “freebird” BIC lighter animation (truly the epitome of ‘crazy useless’), I was navigating through our daughter’s health files. And…the results of the labs – taken only minutes before – were already posted.

Hiding my pride as best I could (while doing a mental happy dance) I glowingly handed the iPhone to my wife. “Why, here are her labs right now!”

“Humph,” my wife (a nurse) replied as she looked over the screen. “She’s normal.” As I prepared a witty “no – above average” response, the receptionist paged us back to the examination room. Moments later the doctor entered, looking over a lab printout. “She’s normal,” he pronounced. With my wife looking daggers at me, I resisted saying, “Hey Doc, we already knew that…”

To me (while glad the medical opinion was positive) the moment was anything but normal. Not only had I proven the value of the iPhone (diminished somewhat when I was later caught waving the glowing freebird animation over my head) but we had just glimpsed the future technology is propelling us into. A future that is more connected, more informed (and yes, a more entertaining) environment.