Just nod and smile

This week at church camp, they introduced wireless Internet over the camp grounds. All us computer geeks were thrilled. It meant no longer having to wait a whole week to see what was going on in the world. Or at least we knew the second Brad and Angelina had their twins.

I spent every afternoon on my computer under the pretense of doing "work". Grandma was quite confused as I packed up my computer and headed down to the communal area to play work on the computer. One afternoon, she asked me where I was going and what I was going to do. I explained I was going to be working on some files (reading blogs) and emailing some friends. Grandma was very confused.

"So you all share one computer?"
"No Grandma, we all have our own computers."
"But how do you all get on the... the... what's it called?"
"The Internet. We are sharing a wireless connection."
"A what? How do you do that?"

I wasn't sure how to explain it to a woman who still cannot figure out what an answering machine is. I had no idea how to explain something I don't fully understand. So, I did what I always do. I made something up.

I told Grandma the wireless connection was like us using a satellite to gain access to the same wave of information. I figured it was simple enough and sounded right, so she would never know.

She stared at me for some time with massive confusion. She did not say anything else or ask any questions. She just stared at me, turned abruptly and walked away.