If someone were to randomly ask you who invented the wheel, would you be able to answer without resorting to a quick Google search? What about the light bulb and alternative currents? I'm pretty confident I could nail the second question, but let's be real, beyond some mental gymnastics, does it really matter that much to know who invented all these things?
We're all benefitting from wheels and electricity on a daily basis, and that's what truly matters. There's an abundance of innovations in the world right now, and honestly, nobody gives a damn about who actually put in the work to make them happen—and that's perfectly okay. We don't need to be walking encyclopedias about everything around us.
However, I do know that back in the day, life was a whole lot tougher. In order to make ends meet and provide for the family, one had to possess a certain skill set and master it thoroughly. In the following pictures—the last batch I snapped out of the 300 I took at the museum I visited about two weeks ago—you'll see some of the tools my ancestors used for fishing, crafting iron items, and engaging in other typical occupations of their time.
I was informed that back then, life expectancy was significantly lower compared to today's standards in most countries around the world, and it's not hard to understand why. People were living in incredibly harsh conditions, and 'sedentarism' wasn't even a term in their vocabulary. Nowadays, we've got millionaires getting depressed over trivial matters, and it feels like the entire universe can fit in the palm of our hands.
Let's face it, we're spoiled rotten, and we don't even realize it half the time. Life on Earth has become so much simpler, yet we insist on making it needlessly complicated. And as automation gradually takes over more of our jobs, we'll find ourselves with even more free time on our hands. Just imagine the levels of depression and drug consumption that the masses might spiral into.
Sure, some of us will seize the opportunity to appreciate all that newfound time and make the most of it. Others won't, and well, that's their loss. At the end of the day, life is what we make of it, and it's all too easy to get bogged down in the details. Take a moment to reflect on how people were living just a few decades and centuries ago, and appreciate the comfort of your present-day existence. It's our overactive minds that tend to complicate things unnecessarily...
Enjoy the photos and your living wherever you might be in the world. Wonder who's gonna get why the title of this post is: "53 Shades of Time"...
Thanks for your attention,
Adrian