my 86 yr old mother has the same # I grew up with. Her "emergency" flip phone is about to go to the 3G graveyard. Not sure what to do. She looks at my old ass Iphone like it's from another world. I'm not a "keeping up w/ the jones'" guy. I go on ebay and buy a 4 yr old phone that's Verizon ready (my company's service) for under $50, have the secretary put my work phone number on it....and that's all I've ever had. Haven't paid a phone bill in 16 years. Just a $30-50 phone upgrade every 5-7 yrs.
When my mom was in her eighties, legally blind, with familial tremor and onset dementia she kept telling me she wanted a cell phone. I kept trying to talk her out of it.
Then my sister came to visit from out of state, and while they were together, my mom asked her to take her to get one.
So my sister did — then left me to deal with the infernal contraption, iincluding but not limited to:
- helping her program it (over and over and over).
- retrieving it when she dropped it in taxis and friends' cars.
- Putting it on a lanyard to she wouldn't drop it in cars (when she remembered to use the lanyard).
- Reminding her which convenient auto-dial numbers were for whom.
- Taking her to the U.S. Cellular office whenever she had a complaint.
But don't get me started. . . .