For those of you that don’t know, I am sort of a technology geek. Yup, I would love to have all the newest gadgets and toys, but, being a poverty stricken middle aged woman who is struggling to survive, I cannot do that. So, I make my choices wisely as to what I am going to purchase.
Lately I have been lusting after a particular link2cell cordless phone system. It’s not horribly expensive, but it is expensive enough that I have been debating the purchase for months. I’ve done the budgeting thing, I’ve done the saving, I’ve done the research…..the one thing I have NOT done is decide WHY this particular item has such a hold on my greedy, I GOT TO HAVE THIS side.
Maybe it’s so I can say that I HAVE one. Or maybe it’s because I want to be able to use my cell phone without going outside and leaning on the tree by the road in order to get proper reception. Yeah, it’s probably the latter one……
You see, I live in RURAL AMERICA. Sounds peaceful and sedate, right? It is. But it’s also a pain in the ass. You see, in order to have proper cell reception you have to make sure that you are standing perfectly still in the proper location on a clear day/night that has NO cloud cover or wind. You also have to pray that there are no low flying birds or large insects between you and the cell tower that you can’t even see from your location. It’s a crap shoot really, but one that I can take care of if only……..
That’s the rub, that elusive “if only”. If only I could cut down each and every tree in the four mile line of sight between here and the tower. If only I could purchase every structure standing between me and the tower, if only I could own the air space and prevent ANYTHING from a sparrow to a gnat from flying between me and the cell tower……if only I didn't live in a place where all technology is treated like a bad science fiction story!!
SO my greedy little tech crazy heart is pinning its hopes on the Link2cell system. You see, if, and it’s a big if, you have half way decent reception in one area of your home, you can link your cell phone to this amazing little cordless phone system. Whenever your cell phone rings it will ring the house phone and you can use the cordless handset like a regular land-line phone. It’s set up on a Bluetooth link between cell phone and the cordless base. The unit comes with three handsets and you can link up to two cell phones!! Yup, sounds good, right!!
Now why, you ask, do you not just have a land line? Well, the answer is simple. Frontier Communications owns our phone system. And Frontier has decided, for whatever half ass reason, that they don’t want to put any more money than necessary in our equipment. In my area the substation is older than I am and was meant to handle 40-50 households……it has over 118 households to date. The substation was suppose to be upgraded, but once again, Frontier in their wisdom has failed to do so. The Utilities Commission has given them until April of 2015, but of course it was suppose to be upgraded by August of 2014 and it wasn't. Frontier says they are “doing the best they can” which translates into We don’t want to screw with it!!
Our phone will go out if the wind blows, literally! It doesn't have to be 50 mile an hour winds either, the breeze from a fly’s wings is enough to put the phone out for a day or six. If it rains you can forget making any calls. There are times when you can’t call out unless someone calls in first. Then you can make exactly ONE outgoing phone call. After that it’s a waiting game. Other times you can make outgoing calls, but if someone tries to call in it goes straight to voice-mail and never rings!! It has been known to cut you off in the middle of a call and then isolate you from phone contact for a week!
And what does Frontier say? Nine times out of ten when you make a repair call they will send one of the six Frontier employees that live and work in this are to your house. They will diddle around for twenty minutes or so and then look you in the eye and say, “There’s nothing wrong with the line, it has to be in the house.” When you point out that it only happens when it rains or is windy and that the interior of the house never suffers through either of those conditions, they will insist that THEY know best and that it IS in the house. They will come in and screw around, basically wasting time and earning money, then hand you a DSL filter and leave.
The repair ticket will be closed and the main office will tell you that it is fixed. Even though all parties involved KNOW that it isn't fixed and that it will be only a matter of time before you replay the same scenario over again.
And the internet, the HIGH SPEED INTERNET?? Yeah, right, high speed if you’re a geriatric turtle! Hell, I had to download an update for one of my graphic programs, the update was all of 517k…..it took almost 5 hours!!!! I could have driven to the manufactures factory and gotten a CD hot off the press in the length of time it took to update the old program!
IF Frontier would upgrade things we might, maybe, possibly have internet speeds that would allow us to say, oh, play a game on Facebook or, dare I say it, watch Netflix without pausing it for over an hour so you can watch twenty uninterrupted minutes. Or make and receive phone calls even when a bird flies past the wire! Yup, it’s that bad.
Thank you Frontier!!
All of these problems and more have driven me to spend the money on a Link2cell system. I’ve taken the plunge, I've ordered it and it will be on its way to me within the next five days! When that box arrives I will tear it open, devour the instructions and then set the thing up and let it charge. Then I will wait, something I should be used to. And when the time is right, when the planets align and the birds roost, I will make that first experimental phone call.
If it works I will rejoice!!!
If it doesn’t, I will return my new toy and buy a chainsaw!
No comments:
Post a Comment