From the Editor: High or Low Tech

I am reminded that cabins and technology can be strange bedfellows, and with mixed results. On the one hand, technology can enhance your cabin living. Who would argue that a remote-control, motorized boat lift is not an improvement over cranking the big wheel ’round and ’round? And when your friends are driving to your remote cabin for the first time, isn’t it comforting to know they have GPS to guide them?
    But sometimes, we are better off unplugging. A few of my friends learned this the hard way. One Friday evening last summer, they hopped into the ski boat for some water-skiing. Expecting a call from another friend en route to the cabin, three of the four boaters brought their cell phones. As a precaution against lake spray, they put the three phones in a zip-top bag and wedged the bag tightly between the dash and windshield.
    The phones were mysteriously never seen, or heard from, again. At some point during the ski voyage, the bag-o-phones broke free and slid over the port side of the boat.
    And then there are the debates over whether TV, video games and the Internet have a place at the cabin. I won’t get preachy, but I must say that it warms my heart to see an aunt and nephew (sans iPod) sit down together in a quiet den to work on a no-tech crossword puzzle after a long day in the sun and water.
    We hope you will continue to enjoy this and all issues of Cabin Life in whatever format floats your boat. But if you are in a boat right now reading this on your Android, please be careful to not drop it in the lake.