{"id":7337,"date":"2023-07-05T06:43:50","date_gmt":"2023-07-05T10:43:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.silvercentury.org\/?p=7337"},"modified":"2023-07-05T06:43:50","modified_gmt":"2023-07-05T10:43:50","slug":"smartphone-saga","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/78.142.243.82\/~silvercentury\/2023\/07\/smartphone-saga\/","title":{"rendered":"Smartphone Saga"},"content":{"rendered":"

My cellphone failed recently, and the experience taught me a few uncomfortable things about myself. For one thing, apparently I\u2019m a technophobe. It\u2019s a long story.<\/span><\/p>\n

About a month ago, I was sitting in my car with my friend, Jeanne, while we attempted to phone each other. We were at the mall and needed a way to contact one another when one of us was ready to leave. We were checking to make sure the numbers we had were correct. <\/span>  <\/span><\/p>\n

Jeanne tried to call me and failed. My phone couldn\u2019t raise her either. We were forced to rendezvous the old-fashioned way, by meeting at an agreed upon time and place. <\/span><\/p>\n

Back home, I tried to work out why my ancient iPhone didn\u2019t work. The truth is, I rarely used it, though I always carried it with me in the car in case of emergencies. Aside from that, I didn\u2019t really need it, so I seldom turned it on. I did charge it from time to time. <\/span><\/p>\n

Now I dialed (outdated term, but I can\u2019t think of another) my daughter\u2019s phone number. No luck. I tried several other numbers. Same thing. All the cell would do was turn on, turn off and recharge. What good was it, if it wouldn\u2019t call anybody? <\/span><\/p>\n

When I first got my phone, I set up automatic monthly payments, but now, when I checked my records, I didn\u2019t see those charges anywhere, not for the last couple of years. The payments had stopped at some point, and I never noticed. My network <\/span>did<\/span><\/i> notice and cut me off without warning. <\/span><\/p>\n

For years, I\u2019d been driving around with no working phone to bail me out if something went wrong. Over dinner that night, a friend observed that I might as well have been carrying around a brick. <\/span><\/p>\n

Friends and family strongly urged me to replace the phone, but I resisted. As I said, I didn\u2019t need it, except in the car. I spent most of every day at my computer, with my landline 12 inches away. Smartphones do all kinds of complicated things I don\u2019t need to do. I didn\u2019t want to waste time learning how to do them. I already had a calculator and a calendar on my desktop, along with easy access to the internet and email.<\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

I admit that I also resisted replacing the phone out of sheer stubbornness. I resented the pressure to buy (and use) a cell and resented even more the fact that so many businesses today just assume everybody has one. They don\u2019t seem to care that some older people, including quite a few in my retirement community, don\u2019t have one or want one.<\/span><\/p>\n

It\u2019s getting harder and harder to do without a smartphone. The other day, one of my online accounts required me to prove my identity by texting back a code it sent me. (You can\u2019t text on a landline.) A doctor\u2019s office said I must text them a QR code, posted in their parking lot, before they\u2019d let me in. The dining room in my retirement community has posted a QR code on each table. If my food isn\u2019t just right, I\u2019m supposed to text the kitchen with the code and my complaint.<\/span><\/p>\n

I dragged my heels for a while but finally decided to replace the cell. I didn\u2019t want another iPhone because\u2014I\u2019m ashamed to admit it\u2014the old one was too complicated for me. <\/span><\/p>\n

I thought about buying a Jitterbug. Designed for older people, it\u2019s supposed to be simple enough even for someone with a porous memory or poor eyesight\u2014or not much savvy about the latest technology. <\/span><\/p>\n

I didn\u2019t think I was that old or that disabled yet. And at 88, I wanted people to say, \u201cLook what she can do\u2014at her age!\u201d I wanted to think of myself that way too. I didn\u2019t want others to avoid me because I seemed frail or confused. All of that was my own internalized ageism and ableism, but it was also based on how older people are often treated. <\/span><\/p>\n

So I stalled<\/span>\u2014<\/span>until one of my daughters read through some Jitterbug advertising and declared it so cool that she\u2019d like to have one herself. That settled it. I bought one.<\/span><\/p>\n

My friends and family all swear smartphones are so useful, they can\u2019t imagine how anyone can get by without one. Determined to learn what my new Jitterbug could do\u2014to see whether they were right\u2014I began experimenting with it. <\/span><\/p>\n

Placing a call was easy, so I moved on to texting, something I\u2019d had trouble with on the iPhone, where I was confronted by tiny, unfamiliar icons. On my Jitterbug, each step had clear instructions.<\/span><\/p>\n

So I entered my granddaughter\u2019s number, tapped a tiny microphone and dictated this message: \u201cWhat do you want for your birthday what do I do next no no no no no.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Give me time. I\u2019ll get it right. I\u2019m determined to make better use of this phone than I did of the last. <\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

My cellphone failed recently, and the experience taught me a few uncomfortable things about myself. For one thing, apparently I\u2019m a technophobe. It\u2019s a long story. About a month ago, I was sitting in my car with my friend, Jeanne,…<\/span><\/p>\n

Read more Smartphone Saga<\/span> ›<\/span><\/a><\/div>\n

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