generation gap

i had a follow-up appointment with my cardiologist this week to get the results of all my tests. and, as expected, my ticker's ticking just fine. better than fine considering i "burnt up the treadmill" during my stress test. (my doctor's words, not mine.) on the way home, i sent both my parents the same text to let them know that everything looked good. now, being a self-proclaimed english major (i didn't actually get the degree; i switched my major from english 3 years into college), i have a very hard time texting like a 13 year old girl would text, the way most people in the world text, the way that actually makes it time saving and more convenient than calling someone. instead, i like to spell out complete words and use proper punctuation. and only in the most desperate of circumstances will i use "u" for "you." so, the text i sent to my parents said "Everything was good with my heart monitor & echo." even using the "and" symbol made me feel guilty. a few seconds later, my dad sends me a reply: "Ptl." wtf is ptl? i thought for a few seconds, and then the 18 years of attending a southern baptist church and school kicked in -- ptl stands for "praise the lord." and then i thought, wtf is my 57 year old father doing making up text acronyms? i debated writing him back in case ptl really meant something else, like he couldn't talk because he was packing the luggage or punching tiny leopards. but i was distracted from making up my own acronyms when my mom sent me her text reply: "PTL!" it was one of the cutest things i'd ever seen and i couldn't help but lol.