How Kindle Helps Grandpa Babysit

Twenty-five years ago when my son was an infant, it was a juggling act to hold the baby, the bottle, and the book. 

Yes, it was a real challenge to keep that book open and to turn the pages without waking the baby or bobbling the bottle. Sometimes the slightest jiggle would shock the kid, making sleep a fantasy and patting, cajoling, and plain old begging come into play, even though the baby understood none of it. 

Enter the Kindle or any eReader now, twenty-five years later. The Kindle lies on the sofa, somewhat distant from old eyes, but that's OK because the text size has been increased. There's no need to hold the "book," no need to keep the page wings separated with a diligent hand, no need to one-handedly flip the pages. Just ease a hand to the page turn, and with a light touch, we're at the next page--stealth reading.

Yes, I can't wait to tell my step-daughter how easy she has it to raise her little boy, much easier than with my son. No walking through snow and blizzards to get the milk. No washing hands before picking up the kid because of ink print stains from the newspaper. No standing up and walking to the TV to change the volume. No dirty diapers or late-night feeding frenzies . . .

Oops! Guess I was getting carried away.

. . . and then, having finished the eBook, I surreptitiously shop the Kindle store without risk of waking the baby. I'm hopelessly spoiled . . . and comfortable with that.

This ol' dawg is learning new tricks. I might even watch the kid again sometime.

Copyright 2013 by Thomas L. Kepler, all rights reserved