"For he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world."
1 John 4:4
1 John 4:4
About Me
Hello, my name is Fred Hermstein. I live in Gardner, Kansas, where my family settled after spending 20 years in the Army. My wife, Sonja, and I have been married for 28 years and have two daughters. Our oldest daughter, Kailey, is married and lives in Missouri. She and her husband are expecting our second grandchild in December! Our youngest, Emily, is in her second year of college. Besides church, family, and work, I enjoy weightlifting, Tae Kwon Do, billiards, watching baseball and basketball, and playing the guitar.
Life with Communication Technology
Growing up in the 70's and 80's, we did not have cell phones, cordless phones, or computers. In fact, we relied on three television networks (ABC, CBS, and NBC) for our world news. I can still remember Peter Jennings commenting on the unrest during the Iran-Contra affair. I recall talking to my girlfriend on a phone connected to the wall. After I left for the Army in 1987, my parents purchased a cordless phone; it was the coolest thing for a small town Kansas family.
I spent 20 years in the Army, traveling across the country and overseas. I left a small town in Kansas to see the world, jump from planes, climb mountains, rappel out of helicopters, and visit foreign countries. Denmark comes to mind for the architecture, Italy for the food, and Korea for the martial arts. All of the places I visited had their own unique cultural norms for communicating. The languages, signs, symbols, mannerisms, and ideologies formed unique relationships in-and-of themselves. For example, when I took the German driving test, I had to memorize over 150 signs. In Korea, words with emphasis require a strong puff of air, as the word is spoken.
I use communication technology at home, at work, for school, at the store… I am always connected. I am not sure, if it is the desire to be connected to family, friends, church, and work, or because it's just the new culture norm. When I started college, it was rare to find someone with a cell phone, now those without a cell phone are few and far between. However, to have information or the ability to reach my girls with a touch of button is incredible. In fact, we can plan dinner with a few text messages. My girls use their phones to take photos for Instagram, Snapchat, and the Vine. When not on their phones, Facebook is a popular means to communicate. I have to make them turn off their phones when the family comes together for dinner, church, or visiting with others. This might be annoying to some, but we still need to know how to communicate face-to-face.
Smartphones allow us to connect to social network sites and communicate with our friends. Our phones allow us to send a message or load a photo on Facebook, update our LinkedIn profile, and check to see what the newest coffee is at Starbucks. Smith’s Law that purports technology changes every 18 months? What's next? I am excited to see where technology takes us, even a kid from Kansas.
Want to hear an airborne story?
Watch the video below.
My photo is from the Kansas City Recruiting Battalion (2016).
Army Logo retrieved from CreativeCommons.Org (2016).
Me standing beside Spike photo taken in 2016 from fellow student Mike P. cell phone.
Airborne photo retrieved from CreativeCommons.Org (2016).