O Wise One's mother was a switch board operator in the Central Office in Sumner where he grew up. Her first baby was actually born there. Seriously how many people can say they were born in the telephone office. My question was how long did she stay at the switchboard. I can just picture her saying “ Can you hold while I push”.
Of course we have several of the typical cordless phones now found in every household. Which does not work when the electricity goes out and must have batteries replaced of course when you least expect it. They wait to go out on Sunday morning when nothing is open or in the middle of a blizzard where you can’t go get more. Gggrrr! 
And of course we have those handy dandy cell phones that are now so popular, you must sign a contract to have and purchase a minimum of 500 minutes. O Wise One bought me a new one 2 years ago for Christmas because he felt that I needed it for when I traveled. Yeah! So I have 500 minutes a month to talk to whomever I want. Now we live in an underground house so guess what. It only works when I am outside. On top of the hill. Standing in the middle of the driveway, on one foot with the phone above my head! It does work when I am in the middle of the grocery store and Baby Oops calls to remind me that she is home from school and is alone. OMG she is almost 15, someone quick call child services. And she is standing in the middle of the driveway on one foot so she can call on her cell phone that daddy bought her too. Needless to say last month I used 7 minutes. All the kids and O Wise One fuss because I forget to turn it on half the time. ( Never occurs to anyone that maybe that is the plan)And my absolute favorite is my own personal phone. This phone is so ME. It sits on the nightstand beside my bed. Along with a lamp, an alarm clock and whatever book I am reading at the time. It works when the electricity goes out. It is the only phone in the house that works always. Kinda like me and the postman it works rain, shine, sleet or snow. Nothing fancy, no batteries, no electricity and no frills. The other day the electricity went out and O Wise One actually had to show Baby Oops how to dial it. This is my Baby Einstein straight A student. I laughed so hard I couldn’t catch my breath. I was turning blue! O Wise One thought he would have to call an ambulance, but atleast the phone was working. Yes people this is MY phone : )
I am so high maintenance!
Blessings from the Holler!
The Canned Quilter
I love it!! I didn't know the rotary phones would still work in this day of digital everything!
ReplyDeleteI loved the telephone office story! We've only had phones up here for about twelve years, now. Back in the early 1900s there was phone service, but during the Depression, most folks left. Now we're a thriving community with 130 people in the phone book, LOL!
ReplyDeleteNo cell phones for us unless we want to drive a couple miles away to use them. My hubby has one for work that he stops and uses when he is on top of a mountain. He's the 'phone' man up here, but it's hard for folks to get ahold of him some of the time.
I'm so interested in your underground house! It was one of the options we discussed when we built the cordwood cabin.
Thanks so much for visiting my blog! I'll be back to visit yours!
You really sound like me. I have 2 cordless phones in the house and when I can find them one of them will always be dead!! It has completely died now. The cell phone beeps so loudly to let me know when someone has left me a message and when I check my messages it's always a hanger up....grrrrr...all that precious time wasted ;-)
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't be able to go back to a rotary phone cause I sure do like caller ID!!!! I have all these phones and I hate to talk on them!!
I love the birthing story too!!!