My niece, Meris, once asked “What kind of name is ‘Bob’?” This was evidence of what we called the “Generation Gap” (a 1960’s expression). We explained that “Bob” is a shortened form of “Robert”. Meris quickly maintained that “Rob” is short for “Robert”. That’s when we realized that all the examples we threw her way were before her time. Bob Hope? Who? Bob Dylan? Nope. Bob Dole? Uh-uh.

Sandy and I are, what you call, “Baby Boomers”, and we often discuss the fading away of things that were prominent in our lifetimes. I’m not talking about milk men, fallout shelters, green stamps, pay toilets or prizes in your laundry detergent. I’m talking about things used today that will be gone. Not all will be missed, but all are sentimental.

We’ve often discussed that every exit on a road trip will someday be the same. Small businesses no longer dot the landscape on freeway and turnpike exits. McDonald’s, Taco Bell, Burger King, BP, Pilot, Days Inn and Super 8s do. Currently you have to take an additional 20 minutes (and up to an hour) on a trip to exit the road train to see something different.

Traditional bakeries and butchers have been on the decline for years. When was the last time you went to a butcher or bakery? Not at the back of the grocery store, but an honest-to-goodness butcher or bakery with its own storefront. If you’re living in the U.S., (because there are tons in Europe), chances are you don’t frequent either one. They’ve become as antiquated as dime stores. Generation Ys’ and Millenials’ interest in healthy and clean eating continues to surge. This means eating more vegetables and less meat and sugars. (sigh)

No one should be surprised when I say the print edition of newspapers is on the way out.  It can also be predicted that television and radio news will eventually disappear as well. The younger generation simply doesn’t read the newspaper, watch newscasts on television or listen to the radio. They graze Yahoo!, Google and the Huffington Post focusing on news that is appealing, feels good or caters to their own opinions.

This is good news for trees, but what will we use to line our bird cages? Clean streaks off of windows? Make funny hats with? Or paper train your puppy?

In the same vein, books and magazines (and eventually libraries) will vanish. Many say they will never give up the physical book, including me. You hold it in your hand; it feels good and smells delightful.

Today you can browse an online bookstore and read a preview before you buy. The price is less than half of a real book and free if you borrow a digital book from the library. Stuart, my youngest, bought my iPad Mini a cover that looks and smells like a leather book. I then began sliding my fingers on the screen to turn virtual pages. I became lost in the story and I forgot I was holding a modern gizmo instead of a book.

Still, I’ve yet to convert to digital cookbooks. How will I know favored recipes if there are no food stain splatters or notes (“Yummy!”, “A+”, “One bite will kill you” or “Needs a lot of wine to get this down”) in the margins?

I once prepared a teenager’s tax return in which he owed the state of Kentucky a small amount. He had no personal check (surprise, surprise) so I directed him to the Post Office to obtain a Money Order. When he came back, I provided an envelope and instructed him to put his return address on the envelope. He wasn’t sure where his return address should be placed. I pointed to the upper-left corner and went to retrieve a stamp. When I came back, he had written his return address, in one line, across the top of the envelope. Ladies and gentlemen, E-mail, Social networking, online bill payment options, eCards, Fed Ex, and UPS, will put a nail in the coffin of the United States Post Office. So out goes the mailbox, stamps and the Most Wanted List.

We virtually have banks in our pockets using our smartphones. With the increased popularity of credit/debit cards, online bill payment, Apple Pay and PayPal, the paper check will soon disappear. The government has stopped issuing paper checks for Social Security, disability, welfare, and other benefits. Recipients receive payments through direct deposit into a bank account or a prepaid card. Somewhere down the line, using the phrase “the check is in the mail” and referencing “checking accounts” will have the next generation scratching their heads. The traditional, brick-and-mortar bank is beginning to die off as will traditional bank tellers and face-to-face meetings with asset managers.

What about cash? I’ve actually experienced a Salvation Army’s red kettle fitted with a credit/debit card machine that prints a receipt! There’s support to eliminate the American penny, but I don’t think all cash will be rendered obsolete. What are the drug dealers, hit men, prostitutes and panhandlers going to do?

70 percent of residential landlines have gone to wireless and cable carriers. Our choice to utilize a landline will be taken away as early as the next decade because phone companies want to dismantle networks of copper landlines. Phone booths, (what will Superman do?), answering machines and Yellow Pages will vanish as well. How will you show your dismay during a phone conversation if you can’t “slam” the headset? Think about the phrases related to traditional phones. Hopefully the youth of today watch enough Loony Tunes to understand that a phone can be “hung up” or “dialed”.

When I speak of “dear departed fashion”, I’m not talking about trends, such as acid-washed jeans and Hammer pants; I’m talking about an absolute ending to certain garments, and style.

Along with special occasions (funerals, Holy Days and weddings), my Dad wore a tie every Sunday. Today, the tie’s demise is evident everywhere. Sales have dropped to half. At the 2013 G-8 Summit, Barack Obama, Vladimir Putin and other world leaders were sans ties. Corporate dress code policies are relaxing and no longer require ties.

What about the ladies? Young ladies don’t know what trousseaus or a bride’s “going away outfit” is.

I know my slips and half-slips have been in the back of my drawer for at least 10 years. Camisoles, Spanx, boy-cut panties and leggings keep panty lines at bay and hide your figure under see-through skirts and blouses.

We used to set aside a whole day for ironing. Today, Millenials rarely, if ever, iron. Most fabrics don’t require ironing. Driers take care of most of the wrinkles. The younger folks don’t have time and believe the wrinkles don’t look that bad.

Along with the vanishing of Go-Go Boots, it’s “lights out” for shoe repair shops. The huge influx of cheap shoes from abroad now makes it cheaper to replace shoes than to repair them.

A couple of weeks ago my niece, Jessica, her son and I went to Cincinnati’s Coney Island. We sat at the edge of Sunlite Pool with our feet dangling in the cool water, watching Will splash and “swim”. Looking around I noticed no one was wearing bathing caps. There was a time when almost all females wore one. It protected your coiffure and kept damaging chlorine and murky lake water away from your hair and ears. Today’s hairstyles are wash and wear with the “slept-in” look prevalent.

So unless you’re at a professional swim meet or your local public pool requires them, you won’t see much of these any more.

On a recent visit to Sandy’s, our great-nephew, Will, came to say goodnight. Aunt Sandy asked “Did you brush your teeth and wash your feet?” (Puzzled looks all around). Children no longer play in their bare feet (it’s too dangerous). When we were children, we did. To keep her sheets clean, Mom always reminded us to brush our teeth and wash our feet.

Will just graduated Kindergarten and may never experience chalkboards and clap erasers or playing dodge ball at recess.

With the decrease in paper consumption by 90% in the next decade, he may not experience pens, pencils, pencil sharpeners and erasers or cursive handwriting for much longer. It’s mind-boggling!

I understand that nothing is permanent. The world is simply changing.

I’ll miss telling time on an analogue clock and my “Baby Memes” wall calendar. On the other hand, I won’t miss cable, unfolding a paper map on a road trip or can openers.

What are you sorry to see go? What don’t/won’t you miss?