SMOKE SIGNAL GENERATION

Oh, it is going to be one of those days~~~~~~~~~~~~!!!

We went to Verizon last night, surely the phone we have had for four years could be replaced with something better so Tom didn't have to stand on the roof of the trailer to call Fargo from the lake. Surely. Well, the lady that helped us had been at Verizon for two years. She had never even seen a phone with an antenna. Good grief.

Now the idea of the cell phone came into the Johnson house one Christmas as a two year plan at $55 a month. Of course, we never use it so it was tossing coins into the trash. When that contract was up, , we got a new phone, one that could be used to link up via dial up to the Internet at the lake. Although it was slow, it was still a connection to the outside world.

When that year was up, we did not renew, kept the phone and went strictly to prepay which is $16.05 a month. Each month, according to the sticker on the calendar, I renew the policy via the phone. I think we have about $325 in credit on it now, down a little because Tom used it at the lake to call Beth.

So, he isn't in favor of standing on the roof so that is how we came to the decision to go to the shop in the Mall last night. The place was very busy; little girls about 8 and 10 where playing games on the Droid. Other's mingled. People cruised about. After a goodly amount of time, they called Tom's name. By this time, we had felt the key pad on all the phones, looking for something that is raised because, of course, Tom has no feeling in his fingers because of the Raynauds Syndrome. We found two flip phones with decent pads; we had made a decision. It just so happened they were on promotion and could be bought at the two year contract price without buying into the contract, that is: Keeping the prepaid. A deal? Us?

Of course, the phone we wanted was not in stock. OF COURSE! Oh, the Johnson curse. Or is that oh, the Johnson's cursed. She assured us that it would be much like it, the numbers would be raised. Tom asked what if it wasn't like the other? She told us there was a restocking fee of $35. Don't they just get you coming and going? Geez.

Now, we go to THAT store because they may be busier, but they also seem more knowledgeable. And it this case, it was good we did buy it there instead of a kiosk type set up at Sam's. Why you ask? Because when she asked for the phone number to look up the information, it was a different number than we thought we had. Ode to joy.

It appears that when we switched from the $55 dollar policy to the prepaid, they switched the numbers. I am certain they told us but we never gave it any thought. And since I prepay by phone, it was never questioned. I am maniac about keeping information and did not find anything in the file to support the number. Oh well, I may have had a brain fart that day.

There was a notice in the in box this morning, the phone has been shipped.

Now that just goes to show how cell phone oriented we are.