When I was a senior in high school in 1985, I was taking Physics from Mr. Heiner. He told us we could use scientific calculators in class to do our work. The problem was that I did not have a scientific calculator.
Scientific calculators were still relatively new at the time. Unlike today, there was no standard calculator that everyone used in school. Different models had different features, and most students did not have one at all.
I told Mom and Dad that I would like one for Christmas.
A couple of weeks before Christmas, I was looking for something in the closet. While I was searching, I noticed a box partially hidden under a blanket. When I pulled it out, I discovered it contained a calculator. Naturally, I opened the box and inspected it.
Unfortunately, the calculator was not nearly as impressive as some of the calculators my classmates were already using. Their calculators could perform exponents, fractions, and trigonometric functions like sine, cosine, and tangent. Some could even store scientific constants such as the speed of light and the number e.
A few days later, I was talking with Mom and casually mentioned some of the additional features my classmates' calculators had. I explained that I really needed a scientific calculator with those capabilities. Mom listened but did not say much.
Christmas morning finally arrived.
I received a different calculator. It had many more of the features I had hoped for and was much closer to the calculators some of my classmates were using in Physics class.
To my surprise, Cade received the calculator I had found in the closet.
I don't think Cade needed a scientific calculator. But he got one!
SIDE NOTE: That calculator stayed with me for many years. In fact, I still had it when Annette and I got married. During our early married years, we used it while grocery shopping to keep a running total of what was in the cart so we could stay within our weekly food budget. If you would like to read more about those years, see Forty Dollars a Week and Barely Getting By.
.jpeg)