Monday, January 27, 2020

Sunday or Not Sunday...That is the question

I've posted here before, my belief that, upon retirement, there are only two days of the week. Sunday and "Not Sunday".

Well! Gonna have to rethink that one aren't we now, Buckwheat?

So, the saga begins a couple of weeks ago.  Mrs J are out to eat at a local Burger Joint, Porky's  (Go early before the rush) and her phone buzzes indicating a text message.  She answers it and asks me "What do you think?"

Source


All the male readers know that this indicates what will be a very dangerous next couple of minutes.  Saying nothing is deadly.  As is saying "Nothing".  Almost as bad is "About what?"  After feverishly reviewing the data stored on my short term memory and finding no data whatsoever,  I said a quick prayer for mercy and asked "About what?"

She looks at me, puzzled and says "About MBD's text".  I grab my phone out of its holster and look at the text icon.  Nothing.

I report that to her.

Being the ex-AT&T employee, she grabs my phone for inspection as clearly I am not competent in cellular operations to receive a text message.

She hands it back and says "See?  You don't have cellular service."

All the male readers will also realize that last is not her complete statement and that it was, immediately be followed by:

"What did you do?"

Again, "Nothing" is not an acceptable answer.

So....

"My dear, I rerouted the power conduits, reversing the polarity of the beam so that I could receive phone calls from Pluto."

Thankfully, the burgers were delivered to the table at that moment.

And the signal from my brain to my vocal cords ordering the release of that statement was interrupted.

Later when the conversation resumed, I had cleverly composed a more strategically viable response.

"Dear, since you have a signal and are sitting directly across from me and I have no signal, I think something is wrong with my phone.  We can take it by the store and have them check it out."

Which we did.

As the guy was looking at it, he popped out the SIM card and noted a piece of something in there.  Cleaned it off and Voila'.  It worked.

Happy now, we headed back to Rancho Juvat, where immediately upon arrival said phone dropped its cellular connection.

Thinking I've got something major going on, I plug it into my Computer and back up the device.

Always an important step.

However, as soon as the backup is complete and I disconnect it from the computer, the cellular connection returns.

And works until the day before yesterday. AKA not Sunday.

So, ever optimistic, as I go to bed, I plug the phone into the computer to communicate with the mother ship or whatever so that it will work the next day.  I dig my old watch, a Timex which doesn't require communication with anything but its battery to function, out and put it next to the bed with the alarm set.

Besides the alarm time, its got three settings, Daily, Weekends, and Off.  I set it to Weekends.

Prepped now for the early arrival of "Sunday", I drift off into the arms of Morpheus, soundly, like the dead.

Now, I have used this alarm before and gotten used to it in the "Not Sunday", "Sunday" routine.  The first day, on "Weekend" setting is "Not Sunday".  When it goes off, turn it off and turn over.  The second day, Turn on the light...

Well, when it sounded, much like the hammers of hell, I rolled over, thought "first day, therefore, not Sunday" turned it off and turned over.

Sometime thereafter, light is starting to wend its way through the curtains, and Mrs J wakes up and asks me if I had set the alarm.  I said "Why?  It's "Not Sunday""

So...I'm revising my weekly calendar.  There are now 3 days every week.  "Not Sunday", "Sunday" and "Almost Sunday".

By the way, if anybody is experiencing the same symptoms with their phone as I had, take it by the store and have them try a new SIM card.  That brought it back to life yesterday.  If it dies again, it's "Sayonara, Sucker!" and I'll have to get a new phone.

I'm thinking I may finally be old enough now for a Jitterbug Flip Phone.
Source

Earlier, last week Sarge stated that one of our missions here is to "remember".  30 years ago this Friday, an event occurred that I will always remember.  If you would stop by here and maybe say a prayer, I would appreciate it.




36 comments:

  1. I visited, said a prayer, and remembered. Sorry for the loss of one of yours. As for the tech issues, I will not be clicking the source of that ad you posted above- if only to prevent being inundated with AARP ads, catheter offers, and vision impaired devices.

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    1. Thanks, Tuna.

      DuckDuckGo, Firefox (and Firefox Privacy windows) are your friend. My default browsing nowadays is in a Privacy window and only log in from there if I must. That having been said, my sacrificial email is useless because of spam and my real one is fast becoming that way. May need to create a supersecret one that I only give out to real people that I trust. Then see how long it lasts. ;-)

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  2. I don't have enough responsibilities outside of work to warrant a phone. Yes, I like that very much! That would probably change once I'm retired. I set mine down after work on Friday, and only pick it up if I hear it go off. Usually happens about 0800 on Monday.

    Prayers sent. Sometimes, the odds don't matter. A movie I like said it pretty well, "The skein is tied".

    I'm not a fatalist, but knowing my ultimate end is in God's hands, is comforting. I just hope I don't do anything dumb to accelerate the date....

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    1. Well, when it was on the fritz, my only concern was family who might have needed to get in touch. Beyond that, I don't use the phone very much and my iPad filled what gaps there were. Which is why, I mentioned the flip phone, mostly in jest, but I don't really need much more than phone and text.

      I'm in full agreement with your last two paragraphs, along with the last sentence, Amen!

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  3. Echoing Tuna, also went there and prayer said. A blink of an eye and then...... Hmmmmm, increasing tech complexity vs aging eyesight and acumen, now there's a dilemma. Guess I already decided since there's a cheap flip in my pocket. Might have to upgrade though since security cams are in the future for the homestead because of break-ins in the neighborhood recently.

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    1. Thanks, Nylon. The security cam is definitely a balancing act isn't it? A balance between security improved vs privacy lost. My security is provided by 9 dogs someone would have to get by before reaching my doors.

      And...that's not all.

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    2. I've thought about cameras too. But not connected to the internet. I'm thinking of rummaging around and digging up an old 802.11G and attaching to that. I have read that internet security isn't even thought about for most all home wifi devices. If it is, it is ineffectual as there are no updates for them. Putting it on a quarantined wifi system is the only way I'd do it. Which renders it ineffective for 'away from home'.

      It wasn't that long ago that I found a website devoted to crawling the web looking for default camera passwords. The stuff it had on it was...... probably illegal, but too easy to find. And breaking their security wasn't hard at all. Thank you, no.

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    3. I've thought of adding a camera that activates when the first gate is opened, sending a picture of the driver to the house. If a confirm button isn't pushed in the house, then the inside gate doesn't open. Got to think through all the "what if's" on that though.

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  4. Yeah, I decided to get a new phone, my old iPhone was getting tired and when I pooched it while clearing snow, it had been through enough of Harold the Destroyer beating on it. While the guy at Best Buy was able to get it to work long enough to declare it a working phone and reset it for a credit, I still got the new phone. After 2-3 years, I find that most phones that I use are ready for the bin. However, the wife still has her original flip phone from 2009 and won't give it up until it stops working or the phone company no longer lets it connect to their service ;-)

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    1. The latter was the case for my Windows phone. I really liked it, its operating system was virtually identical to Win7/10, so I knew how to do things with it, and when I plugged it into my computer, it was just like another computer on the network (which it was, actually). But...Google (aka Android) and Apple beat MS into submission. Alas.

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    2. Ah, yes. Win7/10. Now that MS has officially taken Win 7 out behind the barn and shot it in the head, it's time for me to "upgrade" my PC to 10. My wife's laptop has 10, so I've had a chance or two to look at it. Not looking forward to this. May look into third party software that makes 10 look and act like 7.

      Before we moved, we dealt with a local store that we really liked. Honest, easy to talk to, and their OS installs were clean with all the bloat ware stripped out. I used to just take in my old PC and have them move files/data over to the new one. Alas, they are now three states away, and I have not found their equal here. Likely I will buy from them again and handle the data transfer myself. Did mention not looking forward to this?

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    3. I really liked the WindowsPhone. Easy, simple, not pushing me to do things that I don't want to do. Bastiges!

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  5. Um, um, don't get me started on phones.

    As for prayers and remembering - I will remember Rocket, Capt Robert S. Schneider II, 25 Dec 56 – 24 Jan 90. RIP Sir. Prayers for those he left behind.

    As a side note:

    The aircraft Rocket was flying = 78-0534 McDonnell Douglas F-15C-23-MC Eagle. (18th TFW) crashed Jan 24, 1990 after collision over Chinese Sea 50 mi NW of Clark AB with 78-0520, which landed safely and was repaired.

    The other bird = 78-0520 McDonnell Douglas F-15C-22-MC Eagle. Active in July 2010 with 104th Fighter Wing Massachusetts Air National Guard. Active in July 2018 with 122nd Fighter Squadron/159th Fighter Wing Louisiana Air National Guard.

    Damn...

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    1. Yeah, I flew it several times after the fact. Always felt weird. Probably just me.

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    2. Nope. Ghosts. They really do exist. Just not the way the Ghost Hunters show it.

      Ask anyone who's ever served on an old ship, or gone to an old old old church.

      Ghosts. They're there.

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  6. Being a Latter Day Luddite, there are very few functions on my "smartphone" in use. The upside is that allows the tech savvy females in my life to feel smugly superior as they navigate me through the phone.

    I miss my flip phone. It did all I wanted for years.

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    1. The females in my life feel smugly superior no matter what. The phone thing just makes it easier. :-)

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  7. I was dragged kicking a screaming (well, kicking anyway) into the present a bit before we moved to DFW with the purchase of an I-phone, a 5-s. The map function is what finally sold me, and I must admit it was quite handy before I got to know my way around here. I still have paper maps in my truck.

    I'm still using that phone. Text messages are handy now and then, as is the weather app. If I need reference info for a trip to a big box store, odds are about 50/50 whether I will write it on a piece of paper, or remember that, oh yeah, my phone has a camera. 90% of the rest of the functions on my phone, I have no clue.

    I've found the map is also handy when at the big box store. Open map. Tap on highlighted store. Tap on store phone number. Call? Yes. "Hi, I'm standing in your store, and this is my THIRD call for help on aisle 14..."

    Truly sad that so many neither know nor care that those in uniform have signed a blank check payable up to and including. Sometimes those checks get cashed. To absent comrades.

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    1. I like texting. I will frequently text a "Please call me when you get a moment, it's not a 911, just a question/ want to talk". That allows the recipient to prioritize things appropriately.

      The map app is pretty good, although it did get me lost on the way to Galveston on US90 SW of Houston. There's some pretty creepy places down there.

      I hadn't thought of the call the store from within the store. That could be useful.

      Absent Comrades. Thanks.

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  8. I have a computer in my pocket that, at times, is a major distraction ( that is unless I have my iPad).
    The best thing about the phone (or iPad) is I can text and don’t have to talk.
    The worst thing is I can be reached almost anywhere.

    To absent comrades.

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    1. Yep, Although I'm not very good at texting. One of the things I liked about the Windows phone was you could dictate your text message to it. Which was nice while driving, push the button on the steering wheel, Say "Text Uncle Skip" then dictate your message and say Send. Supposedly, the iPhone can do that. However, the one time MBD tried to show me how, it was button pushing at warp speed and then didn't work in my truck. So, there's that.

      Absent Comrades, Skip.

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  9. Oh, juvat, your tails of phone woe remind me of my semi-recent fight/discussion/losing battle with Mrs. Andrew over my cell-phone.

    As to flip phones, I had one. Spent more time trying to open it than operating it, almost ended up ripping the flip off. Go get yerself a cheap Samsung.

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    1. I don't know, Beans, the large buttons have a certain appeal to me. Maybe they've got a model that works kinda like a switchblade, just a flick of the wrist to open it. Even better would be a flick to open followed by a left or right flick to auto dial the two numbers I'd use if for. Yeah....That's the ticket!

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  10. My trusty Samsung Galaxy S5 is starting to die. The battery puffed up enough to pop the case open along one of the seams, but it's still working.

    I'm not about to pay the scandalous prices they want for a new phone, so when this one finally dies, I'm going to see what I can get from Verizon for CHEAP.

    I'll be looking for a barely-smart phone, as I don't need, want, or desire most of the fancy stuff the new phones come with.

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    1. Phone, Text, Wx and Map in decreasing order of need. I' guess the first two are necessity for me, the other two in the very nice to have category.

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    2. drjim, they make some 'dumbed down' Samsungs that are as good as a Galaxy S5. And you can get a refurbished Galaxy S5 Active, which is an armor-plated and water-resistant version of the S5 for about 150-200 bucks.

      A battery that's puffed up is a dangerous battery. I'd get away from that thing before it catches fire.

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    3. @juvat - Yep, me too.

      @Beans - OH, I'm fully aware of the damage a LiPo can do. I had friends at Boeing who were on the 787 program, and heard more horror stories than were ever published. And I use some pretty husky LiPo packs in my little race cars. I charge/discharge/storage charge them per the manufacturer's specs, with a high-end battery charger, and store them in a flame resistant Kevlar "LiPO Sack", contained in a vented 50 cal ammo can sitting on concrete in a monitored area.

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    4. So....Lithium batteries are potentially Bad? Who knew? ;-)

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  11. Thoughts and prayers. Absent comrades.

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  12. A sip of bourbon and a silent "Thanks for your service" for Rocket tonight. I've stood at attention and saluted for "Taps" far too often. respectfully, Alemaster

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    1. Thanks old NFO. Finished Grey Man Sunset. Great book! I felt like I knew or had known the characters. Well done.

      Absent Comrades.

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Just be polite... that's all I ask. (For Buck)
Can't be nice, go somewhere else...

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