But You're Not Gonna Reach My Telephones

    This time last year, I didn't own a single smart phone.  I currently have two, plus I am the primary caretaker for my mother's.  How did this happen?  I'm still unsure.  First, the background.  When cell phones first came out, I had no use for them.  I didn't have anyone to call.  I rarely went anywhere on my own, so I didn't have any need to alert someone if I was having problems.  Even when the first PDAs and smart phones came out, I was intrigued, but not enough to actually buy one.  I mean, why waste so much money on something I really didn't need.  Even when the technology improved, including features that tickled my fancy, I stayed away.  I barely even looked at the various books and manuals that came out that would come through my store. In fact, I would wind up getting my MacBook well before I would have a smart phone in my possession.  This would change when my mother got appointed to a local utility board. For some reason, it was decided that the members would need official phones so they could more easily stay in touch.  So, when my mother received her phone, it was going to be me to find out how it worked.  Fortunately, it was an SE model iPhone, so I already knew many of the basics of Apple software.  The particulars of an iPhone were still beyond me.  I would up downloading the manual onto my computer just to get many of the basics down, while my mother checked a book out of the library, possibly on a different model.  I mean, why buy anything for something that technically isn't yours.  My mother was just going to use it for calling about board business anyway.  Well, we wound up using the camera to take pictures of animals we saw while driving or the latest holiday decorations for the store, but not much else.  I mean, I helped my mother make a emoji of herself on it, but that was the most involved with the phone she has ever gotten.  Well, things changed again last year, when my university made a notice that two factor authentication would be implemented for use of many sensitive portions of their online information, including classes.  I wasn't taking any last semester, but I was scheduled to take an exit exam.  While online graduate students like me weren't immediately effected by this change, my mother was freaking out, so much so that she demanded I get a phone as soon as possible.  Of course, I was going to get an iPhone just for the connectivity.  I looked around for a few weeks before choosing an outline and option that worked good enough.  I mentioned that story in a previous post last year.  I wound up not needing the phone until this semester, and I mentioned that story in a post a few weeks ago.  So, what about my second phone?  Last month, the board notified my mother that she would be getting a new phone.  She was also told that the old one was now hers to do with as she pleased.  She could've sold it, but she probably wouldn't get that much for it.  So, I am now keeping it.  The current plan is to use it for one of my gaming accounts once the game departs Facebook.  Sure, the old phone doesn't have a cellular plan connected with it, at the moment, but it should still work with wifi connections.  If that doesn't work, I might have to borrow my mother's phone so that I can keep both accounts going without having to switch them back and forth on the same phone and risk losing one.  Her phone is the previous year's model to mine, so there shouldn't be any problems with that part.  I also bought a book and a manual for my phone, as the former is helping me get better acquainted with the regular features while the latter is for the latest iOS updates.  In fact, I'm still learning some new things about my phone.  For instance, there appears to be a way to connect a mouse via Bluetooth to my phone so I can play my game the way I would like to.  I haven't made it work yet, but if it does, this would make playing my game less frustrating.  I should add that playing Golf Clash with just swiping the screen isn't too hard, I still like my mouse.  And no, I still barely use my phone for calling.  Mostly, it has just been calls to an out-of-state supplier.  My phone has a better long distance plan than my store's landline. I just don't have anyone else I need to call out of the blue.