Hold The Phone...

We finally decided to stop using a pager and start using a cell phone.

I know, I know -- "Allen, my goodness! You decided to join the 21st century!"

Yeah, yeah...

A lot of things led to it, not least of which was our last couple of wedding anniversary travels, where a cell phone really would have come in handy (in the mountains of Pennsylvania en route to a wonderful resort that we could not find for the life of us -- or in the middle of the hill country with no phones, lovely as it was).

Also, it just seems that if you're stuck in traffic or have a flat tire or you just need to relay some information, there's no reason not to have a cell phone.

And, is it just me, or is it quicker and easier to get approved and pay for a cell phone than it is to order fast food? I was amazed. Granted, I picked a good time and provider -- on Memorial Day -- and the guy working there told me I was his only customer of the day thus far, so I got some good deals...

...but then there was the "DUH" moment.

We got our first error message on the phone about 3 hours after I got it home. It said "SIM card rejected" on it's little screen. So I removed the back panel, the lithium ion battery and gently took out the SIM card and reinserted it into its little slot.

And then the phone wouldn't turn back on.

That was a bummer.

The next day, I went right back up to the cell phone place and asked what the deal was. To this, the man who had sold me the phone and the monthly plan said those five condemning words (in a reassuring Indian accent) -- words that strike fear and dread into a techno geek such as myself:

"This is the 'ON' button."

(Hangs head in abject shame.)

I'd accidentally pressed the on/off button and turned the phone off while getting the back cover off of the phone to reposition the SIM card.

"Wile E. Coyote....genius." (*shakes off the memory*)

The cell phone has worked well since then.