How I spent my Saturday:

I set an alarm for 7 a.m., playing Miles Davis’ “So What”

I checked the weather forecast.

I bought a train ticket

I told my son, who was staying with a friend in Brooklyn and with whom I used to routinely spend 3 hours on a video chat when he was in Seoul, that I was leaving for a Met game.

I looked to see if there was traffic on the way to the train parking lot.

I bought a scone and an Easter surprise for my family at a bakery.

I checked to see what time the next train was coming. 

I boarded the train and showed the conductor the ticket.

I listened to songs associated with the Mets.

I played a variation of Mille Bornes, the French road race game. 

I checked my recipe for Chateaubriand that I made for Easter dinner to see if I needed any other ingredients. I had already ordered the demi glace concentrate for the sauce.

I wrote down the missing ingredients I needed.

I boarded a New York City subway train.

I checked to see what was going on in the news.

I got to Citi Field and told my son I’d meet him at the subway station.

I followed him as he went from Brooklyn to Flushing, just as I followed my daughter when she flew from Los Angeles to New York last week.

I met him and we walked to the ballpark, where he’s working this season.

I went for an hour-long walk in Flushing Meadow Park and recorded how far I went and how long it took me.

I entered the Met game with my ticket.

I texted my son to tell him I’d meet him at Shake Shack; I didn’t tell him I dislocated a pinky in a fall at the ballpark gate. (Not everything has to be done right away)

I bought a chicken parm sandwich and a bottle of water.

I kept score of the game, which the Mets lost 7-6.

I took pictures of him working at the game, then sent them to him, his mother and sister.

He told me where to meet him after the game outside the ballpark.

Got back on the subway.

Bought dinner at a Manhattan diner.

Called my wife to tell her about the dislocated pinky. She wasn’t happy.

My son took a picture of me walking down a street for a project.

Got on the train for home.

Listened to a playlist of songs by artists from California.

Checked to see if I wanted to purchase and download any new songs.

Played Mille Bornes again.

Unlocked my car doors. Started the motor to warm up the car.

Used a flashlight to see my way through my lightless garage.

Showed my wife all the pictures of our son taken that afternoon.

Here’s what would stun anyone alive in 1954:

Every single thing on the above list was done on a device the size of a dollar bill.

We are coming to the point that we take smartphones for granted. But they are an amazing achievement of the human race – and the smart version of cellphones have been around for less than 20 years.

It’s estimated that three-quarters of the world has smartphones. The world has 8 billion people. Do the math.

Or, better yet, let your smartphone do it. There’s probably a calculator on there too.

Smartphones are the thing that would have stunned my parents the most in April 1954. There have been a lot of amazing things that I have discussed over the past 10 weeks, but smartphones take the cake.

 A cake you can order from a bakery in Minneapolis on your smartphone.