On Tue, 19 Feb 2013 15:07:56 -0500, Dave Smith
> wrote:

>On 19/02/2013 2:42 PM, Brooklyn1 wrote:
>
>> Wasn't free, with minutes it cost $60. I have no need for a fancy
>> schmancy pricey cell phone, I only wanted plain vanilla, no extras...
>> there's a good chance I may never use this one. I bought a cell phone
>> ten years ago with a one year contract from Verizon, the darn thing
>> sat on my desk for a year, I never made a call, it never received a
>> call, when the year was up I turned it in, unused. I'm not a phone
>> person, I certainly don't need a phone when I'm outdoors... for my few
>> calls my land line is more than sufficient. Like the subject line
>> says "For Emergencies Only", it's for in case I go into town and get a
>> flat tire or some such car problem. The only numbers I programed in
>> is the auto repair place in town, 911, the walk-in clinic, and my next
>> door neighbor. This phone is for insurance, as with all insurance
>> it's something one hopes they'll never need to use.
>>
>
>I have an inexpensive flip phone with a $15.95/month emergency use plan.

For a year that's $191.40, not so inexpensive for a phone you'll
hardly if ever use... you'd be much better off with a TracFone. I
could have had my TracFone for $20 if I didn't opt for the 180 extra
minutes... afterwards I had second thoughts about buying all those
minutes but it it was a triple minutes deal and seemed like a good
thing to do at the time, especially since those minutes keep rolling
over if I don't use them. I could have bought a case for under $5 but
of all the cases I looked at I liked that Duluth Trading case best...
I even spent time the next day looking at cases at other web sites but
none were as nice.

> It is actually in my son's name. He got a deal on it at a previous job
>and when he moved to Montreal he left it with me. A little more than 2
>years ago the battery died on it and it almost as much for a new battery
>as it was to get a newer phone.
>
>I rarely used to even remember to take it with me, or to turn it on if I
>did remember to take it. I started carrying it more often after I
>developed a heart problem. I spend a lot of time walking in the woods
>with my dog, or out bicycling, so it may come in handy to let people
>know where they can find my body if something happens.
>
>I don't know about these people I see walking around with a phone glued
>to their ear all the time, or texting while with friends. I must be old
>fashioned. I don't feel a need to be connected all the time.
>
>When I was working I had one of the few vehicles that was equipped with
>a cell phone, but it was hardwired. Later on the rest of the staff were
>issued cellphones. One of my coworkers suggested I should ask for a
>replacement cell, a portable to replace the hardwired one. Nuts to that.
>My boss used to have a hard time getting hold me. If I answered the
>phone it meant that I was sitting in my van. If I was not in the van he
>could assume that I was busy working. As far as I was concerned, the
>phone was handy if I needed something. It was a PITA if it was just for
>them to get hold of me. In my van I had a desk, a tool box, mobile
>computer terminal, a photocopier and a cellphone..... and privacy. I
>liked it that way.

I'm not much of a phone person. I like to occasionally speak on the
phone with friends during early evenings from home, but not when I'm
out. In all my years I may have used a pay phone three times, and
only for something I considered important. I would never make a call
just to chit chat while I'm driving, I don't even like to hold
conversations with my passengers, I find that distracting.