Retirement Fun

My parents have decided to retire, and with so many friends and family members living in the U.S., they really needed email to stay in touch. So, just before Easter a package arrived.

Inside the box was a new 2.0 Ghz Dell Dimension computer and big-ass printer. I spent about 10 minutes hooking it all up so the cable guy could install their high-speed modem the next morning. Without it, emails to their friends would have to be printed off, folded, put in an envelope and mailed.

Although my dad has had email at work, he's never had internet access until now, so he's had much fun learning to put pictures of BMW M3s as his desktop wallpaper.

My mom is a conundrum. Terrified of technology, and wires specifically, but with a smile that reminds me of the animated Reach Toothbrush "flip top head" guy, she laughs like a little girl when she views .mov files of her grandsons taken with her own camera.

It is all very amusing to watch how this computer is changing their lives. But somehow I just can't imagine Dell's advertising campaign had any influence on this purchase.

It would be interesting to see the actual demographic vs. the targeted demographic of the "Dude, you’re gettin' a Dell!" campaign. Colossal advertising blunder? Or ingenious marketing ploy? "Yo, old dudes, only cool young dudes buy Dell’s! BOOYA!"