Telephones
The evolution of the telephone has been mind boggling, don’t you think? It’s not that long ago that the home phone was a black thing on the wall in the kitchen. Or in the hall. Then came table phones, and lo and behold you had your choice of colors. You could not move around the house while engaged in a phone conversation because of the limitation of the cord, although some people installed longer cord so it could reach into another room or in a closet where one’s conversations were private and not to be overheard by the rest of the family. This was especially welcomed by teenage girls.
Compared to days of yore, though, the home phone of today is partly wireless so you can take it with you anywhere in the house. Even in the yard as long as you don’t stray too far. No more restrictions of cords. Practical, of course, but not always pleasant for the person at the other end of the line, like when you’re talking to someone and you hear that they are in bathroom relieving themselves. I don’t know about you, but I can do without that type of multitasking!
These days, of course, most people have phones they carry in their pockets. While younger people are dispensing with home land lines all together, that’s not the case for everybody. I still have mine, like most people I know. It just seems practical since cell connections are not always reliable especially when you forget to recharge the battery.
The nice thing about mobile phones is that you can turn them off when required, for example, when you are in a movie theater or at your doctor’s office. However, not everyone bothers to do that when they should. I was visiting a funeral home recently to pay my respect to the mother of a friend, and while the son was praising his deceased mother, a phone rang in someone’s pocket. Without missing a beat, he said: “I take it my mother is calling to say how pleased she is that so many people came to visit.” The guilty party quickly left to take the call outside while the rest of us could not help but chuckle. I’m sure it pleased the deceased who, like her son, had a quirky sense of humor.
