Me & My Iphone

Inspired by the always-inspiring Melissa Wiley, who wrote here about A Day in the Life of Her IPod Touch, I've been planning for some time to write about how I use my Iphone because it is just such a wonderful timesaving, fun-making, useful tool for me.

Just for some perspective, I had only had it about 5 months when we went to Canada last summer, and in fear of huge data charges, I turned off most of the features of my Iphone, and used it very sparingly for calls and texts.  When we drove back onto US soil, I was not yet one mile into Michigan, turned it back on, and told my husband, only half-jokingly, "I feel so much better now that I've got my superpowers back."

Since that time, I've expanded my use of the Iphone dramatically. Back before there was an Iphone, I used to talk up my Ipod to friends as my number one home education tool--audio books, etc., but the Iphone goes way beyond that.

I think I'm just going to list a top 10 ways I use my Iphone, other than for phone calls and texting.  I could probably do a number of these posts, but just for a start.....

1.  Universalis is the Liturgy of the Hours online.  The awesome Martin Kochanski is developer of this great website developed an Iphone app that is more than $20, seemingly exhorbitant for an app,, but worth every. single. penny.  I use this one if I'm up early--I don't have to turn on the light and wake anyone else up, and I can read night prayer to my kids in a darkened room.   I use this app multiple times per day, just about every day.   It has Mass readings, too, but I don't use that at Mass, for fear all the people around me think I'm checking email.  I'm not!

2.  Camera.  I love that I can snap a photo and instantly text it or, more commonly because I don't have unlimited texting (such a sadness to my near-teenager), e-mail it to one of my family members in other places.  The newest Iphones, such as that owned by one of my sisters, can take video, but I can just be jealous of her for now until it's my turn to get a new iPhone, some years down the road.

3.  Ipod/music.  I have many, many podcasts and lots of music on my Iphone, so when I'm out on a run I can choose what I want to motivate me or just keep me occupied.  I love that the Iphone has an external speaker, so I don't have to use headphones and can just listen to it straight and still be alert to traffic and other things around me.  It sometimes startles people if I'm at the track and pass them with either music or interview blaring, but I try to keep it low around others.  Podcasts I love should be another post; that's such a great way for me to get information while I'm out and about.

4. The New York Times is great to catch up on world news.  Many moons ago, pre-Internet and blogs, when I worked in DC,  early mornings I would read the NY Times, Washington Post and Wall Street Journal, and for many years it was a treat for me when we traveled back East to buy those newspapers and have the luxury of reading them.  I don't really need to do this anymore, and that saves a lot of travel $$$!  I can get all the articles I'm interested in, and instantly email them to family & friends, or save for future reading. (much like my parents used to cut out and mail me interesting or funny articles from their local paper).

5.  Google maps.  Truly, I don't know what I'd do without this one.  Blinking blue dot tells me where I am, so I can see where I'm going.

6.  Email.  It is hard to respond to messages, so this is actually somewhat of a deficit. I might have a chance to check my email, but it's more time consuming to respond, so it's hard to remember when I get back to the computer what messages I need to send back, because they show up as "read."  I wish there were an easier way to respond quickly to emails.

7.  Game apps.  These keep kids or their mom busy killing time when said kids or mom need a little break.  Word Freak is like "Lingo," the strangely addictive Game Show Channel show (we discovered months ago when someone was sick and couldn't do much but watch tv) for the Iphone.  PopMath is a fun math facts app, Chess and Checkers and IDoodle Lite are also fun.  Days Until is a hugely popular app, with people checking frequently in the weeks before their birthday how many "days until."

8.  The Weather Channel because we are weather-involved at our house.  Someone is always checking this.

9.  E-books.  I have the complete Jane Austen, of course, and that is really handy for read-alouds or quote-checking when the Jane Austen book group meets.  My oldest is reading Pride & Prejudice to me and it is so easy for her to find her place, and we never need to remember to bring the book along.  I also have Homer and a a few others.  I did download the free Kindle app and a few free books for it from Amazon, but I don't find I read them as much.  I much prefer real books for reading things, but it's pretty nice to have this ability.

10.  My newest app is Instapaper, discovered via Melissa Wiley's post.  I didn't catch on to how useful it could be until recently.  Now instead of spending valuable time on my computer catching up on blogs, as much as I love to do, I can "save them for later."  They are instantly synced with my iPhone, and I can catch up whenever I have a free minute here and there, and I don't need to be at my computer.  I anticipate using this one a lot.

One thing I wish there were an app for, (I'm sure I could come up with more, but this just seems a need) is the new Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC).  It's not on Ipieta, even thought it seems like every other Church document ever printed is on here, along with the Bible in multiple languages.  A searchable app of the CCC would be so worth it, but it is not available as far as I can tell.

Does this mean I'm hankering after an Ipad?  Not quite yet.  I am tech-y, but tend to be a second-generation getter.  I'm sure there's a better way to put that.  I consider myself tech support at our house, and yet it has been my husband who gave me my first Ipod back in the day (thank you for the thousandth time), after months of talking to me about it, literally sent me out the door to get myself an Iphone during Christmastime a year back (a million times thank you), and is talking up the Ipad, but I'm not quite ready for it.