Bad weather and a virus gave me a few days to sit an think. While this is usually a dangerous thing for me to do, this time I came up with something. I started wondering about common everyday items that were in widespread use in 1907 and are still being used the same way in 2007.

The first thing that popped into my brain was a knife and fork. Maybe I was hungry at time. Anyway, somewhere around here we still have some silverware that my grandmother used when she was a young woman and she was born around 1885. Her silverware still works. If you go out and buy new knives and forks and spoons, they still function the same way.

Then I thought of a hammer and saw. I have both in my shop, and use them from time to time, but I know that such tools have almost been replace by nail guns and power saws. So they failed to make my list.

Then I thought about a baseball bat. They look the same and many are still made of wood, but aluminum bats are in widespread use. I suppose it's just a matter of time before wood bats strike out.

Except for the wheel count, automobiles are completely different. Airplanes no longer resemble 1907 models. Firearms have changed too, but a few of the older designs are still in use. Fishing rods look the same, but they are usually made of different materials. A 1907 fly reel might still work, but it would be to valuable it take to the creek.

Bicycles have evolved over a long period, but some 21st Century bikes still look somewhat like their 100-year-old counterparts.

Bridges built a hundred years ago are nothing like those built today, except that they still span rivers.

Watches are almost all electronic these days. A few may still look like the old windup models, but inside they are a different story. Even 50 years ago, a battery powered watch would have seemed impossible.

There are new models of pots and pans, but they still function like great-grandma's.

Your eyeglasses still function in pretty much the same way, and while printing is a completely different process, books have changed little.

Most of the things we use today were not even in the dream stage in 1907. For example, that mouse in your hand.
Howard