I’ll Just Remote In 3: Nana Gets a New Computer

In the past, I’ve written about my Nana and her computer issues. Then she got an iPhone and that was fun on a bun. However, in this multi-year series, we have yet another new chapter: a new computer. This time, Nana has gotten a new computer with Windows 11 and most importantly, she has switched from a tower to a laptop. I started on this journey with some trepidation, but since it was here idea and her computer was getting old, we started shopping. However, unlike in times past with technology, this time was completely unique.

I will admit that I had to have a little coming to Jesus with Nana about computers. She has been a computer user for almost 40 years, but computers have changed a great deal in the intervening decades. I told her flat out that she had to help me, help her, and be more willing to learn these processes and be willing to do them. I’ve seen her do quite complicated things when she has the incentive to do so. But I’ve also seen her stymie herself unnecessarily around the computer. Our latest interaction about technology started with her new stereo.

On Black Friday, we purchased a new computer, and we purchased a new stereo for her to listen to things on. The laptop needed to come to me first, so I could get it ready for her, but the stereo went to her directly. She ended up getting something bigger, so she could have a remote and 5 disk changer. The moment it arrived, and she put it out of the box, she simply rejected it. It hardly got unpacked. Confused, I asked her what was wrong with it. “It’s just not for me. I can get like this. It’s really frustrating for others.”

It was simply too modern, too confusing, and too much. In the past, Nana has prided herself on being a luddite and not engaging with modern technology. However, this stereo situation and my little talk has triggered an exciting new change. Knowing that we were about to transition to a new computer and a new operating system, I was not enthusiastic about this development. I decided to make my own thoughts known.

The reality is that for the past decade, I had been doing the heavy lifting when it came to Nana and technology. Any time anything went wrong, I fixed it. I listened to rants about the computer and other technology. The same thing happened when she decided, without telling me in advance, that she was switching to an iPhone. I soldiered on, doing what I could to make her computing experience as comfortable as possible. This was the last straw for me. It was time for a change.

Although the stereo went back to where it came from, it represented a major shift in our relationship and her relationship with technology. I begged her to be open to technology and to give things a chance. Merely to try it out and be open to the idea that she can do this and that it is easy. After our talk, she agreed with me and decided to have a think about the situation. We talked some more, and she resolved to do more to help me help her. It was a conversation that needed to be had, and things have been better for having talked about the situation frankly.

Her new laptop, with my preparation, arrived, and we opened it up for the first time this week, and it went really well. I was nervous. After the stereo incident, I didn’t want her to open the box and reject the new computer just based on looks. We were able to connect it to the internet easily, and I was able to remote in and get things fixed up. We are still transitioning from the old computer to the new computer and monitor that we have gotten. This requires some help from local support, but she should be open and running in no time. I’m pleased that we have gotten over the hump and that we have shifted into a new place about technology.

Handling technology with older people is difficult. However, I hope that my patience and perseverance will earn me the luxury of having some young person help me with whatever technology exists in several decades when I’m out of my depth, too.