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| Page late and a dollar short |
Since I can first remember growing up my parents always had a telephone, part of that was probably due to my mother working for the Bell System. All my life except for a six month time when I rented an upper flat during high school I had one, but technically I still had a phone available through the landlady to receive messages. It was always there, always (well usually) working and ready. I still remember calling my mother at work but dialing “O” when she was an operator until I was about four or five. My great grandmother lived with us for a number of years, I was told that when she suffered a stroke I called my mother at work and told her, maybe around 55-56 time frame. We’ve been looking at expenses and for as rarely as we use it it got targeted, now up to almost fifty dollars a month and the only use it seems to get is telemarketers, up to December Medicare calls and lately vehicle warranty pitches. So last night I made the call to cancel. I was asked for a reason, I gave two. The cost involved for something we don’t use and how AT&T doesn’t do much to curb these, in fact I’ve received two so far this morning and four yesterday. So of course the usual amount of attempted persuading the customer to continue the service that culminates with “We can offer you a cellular phone with your existing telephone number so you won’t miss any important calls” spiel. That one got my comment “So I can get nuisance calls to follow me whenever and wherever my cell goes? Nope.” So, after 70+ years that I can remember, as of next month no more land line, cellular exclusively. Feels kind of strange. -------------------------------------—————— ————————--Ignorance is a powerful tool if applied at the right time, even, usually, surpassing knowledge(E.J.Potter, A.K.A. The Michigan Madman) | ||
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Good move. You shouldn't miss it at all. Beagle lives matter. | |||
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Member |
I haven't had a land line in years, but back when we did and I called Verizon to cancel it, I was told our bill would increase without the land line due to the "package discount" of land line combined with internet. What a racket so I said then cancel that too and switched to a cheaper, internet only provider. No car is as much fun to drive, as any motorcycle is to ride. | |||
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Bolt Thrower |
I finally convinced my father to drop his land line. In my area they are in horrible repair, and he had been fighting for two months to get it repaired. Providers are no longer regulated to keep them operational, so they just never fix them. Even my workplace went cell for their security system when our ceo calling their ceo didn’t work. | |||
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| Page late and a dollar short |
First call this morning, identifies himself as Chad, “I’m calling about the warranty for your 2012 Jeep Wrangler”. Sure, a twelve year old vehicle with 138k I think to myself. So I reply, “I reported it stolen a week ago” and suddenly I get a “click” from his end. Second call, I answer “What?” In my usual pissed off tone. The automated message says “Can you hear me?” to which I answer “No” and again I receive the click. Kind of sad, the black Trimline Touch Tone phone I’ve been using almost continuously since 1970 will fall silent. -------------------------------------—————— ————————--Ignorance is a powerful tool if applied at the right time, even, usually, surpassing knowledge(E.J.Potter, A.K.A. The Michigan Madman) | |||
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Nullus Anxietas |
Doesn't have to. We bid "AT&T" adieu in 2017. A joyous day, because we hates the thing that calls itself "AT&T," we do. But my wife was adamant we keep the landline. So...
Though, since you already cancelled service you might not be able to port your landline number anymore, even if you were interested in going through all that. "America is at that awkward stage. It's too late to work within the system,,,, but too early to shoot the bastards." -- Claire Wolfe "If we let things terrify us, life will not be worth living." -- Seneca the Younger, Roman Stoic philosopher | |||
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Spread the Disease |
Nice! I haven’t had one at the last three houses I’ve lived in. ________________________________________ -- Fear is the mind-killer. Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration. I will face my fear. I will permit it to pass over me and through me. And when it has gone past me I will turn the inner eye to see its path. Where the fear has gone there will be nothing. Only I will remain. -- | |||
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Drill Here, Drill Now |
I haven't missed mine in the last 15 years. Can't remember how long ago Dad ditched his but I bet it's about a decade. As far as calling people, I vastly prefer them to have a cell phone. Countless times, I spent more time making small talk with my buddy's spouses than it took for my buddy and I to have the actual conversation I intended. Ego is the anesthesia that deadens the pain of stupidity DISCLAIMER: These are the author's own personal views and do not represent the views of the author's employer. | |||
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All we get are harassment calls, day and night, and robo calls confirming transportation times for my GF's hospital visits. I wonder if the robo calls can be switched to her cell? I imagine they can, so I'll have to check how much our land line / internet / TV package will cost if we drop the land line. -------------------------- Every normal man must be tempted, at times, to spit on his hands, hoist the black flag, and begin slitting throats. -- H L Mencken I always prefer reality when I can figure out what it is. -- JALLEN 10/18/18 | |||
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| Page late and a dollar short |
I’ll look into that. I really don’t care about the existing phone number as it’s been corrupted by Medicare, car warranty, solicitations for charities and political calls. First three or four years we had that number we were getting numerous calls from skip tracers for the previous holders of the number. Had some fun one night when the caller insisted I give her my name which I refused to. She said “Under the law you have to give me your name” and in reply I said “I don’t have to do s***, call the phone company and ask them” She replied “You can’t talk to me that way you a******” and you can imagine what I said (NSFW) next before I hung up. Last call I received for them was what purported to be an elderly relative. I told her politely “If you do get in touch please tell them a lot of people have been calling for them”. People like their car loans, student loans, bank and store cards but I left out the details of who the callers were. -------------------------------------—————— ————————--Ignorance is a powerful tool if applied at the right time, even, usually, surpassing knowledge(E.J.Potter, A.K.A. The Michigan Madman) | |||
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My old man was a telephone installer for Wright Patterson AFB. As such, we had multiple phones in our house at a time when most people only had one. I was rigorously trained to unplug all the extra phones in the house the second the OD green Ohio Bell car was spotted in the neighborhood. It seems that the phone company could find an illegal phone by the voltage on the line that the ringing bells drew. Ah, the innocence of youth! Thanks, Dad! I too went VOIP with a setup from Consumer Cellular but later dropped it in favor of just using a cell phone. Finally unplugging all the stuff from the wall brought back warm memories of scamming Ohio Bell. End of Earth: 2 Miles Upper Peninsula: 4 Miles | |||
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| On the wrong side of the Mobius strip  |
When I was much younger, I moved into a new apartment and was assigned a new phone number. The town I lived in had just been assigned a new exchange and my number was ended in 0007. I kind of wished I kept that number. I recently moved from POTS lines to VOIP. That change saved me some money. When I retire from my current job, I'll likely sunset the VOIP lines unless cell service is marginal at the retirement home. | |||
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Party lines were great fun! | |||
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thin skin can't win |
Last one we ditched was around 2010, but that was only at very minimal service and just to have for when power out or some similar BS. Our favorite landline of all time was in rural AL at a cabin. Started as a party line, eventually a private line. The number was one digit off from the local Hardee's, so we'd get calls at random times with people placing orders of chicken to go, etc. "Sure, we'll have that ready for you in 10 minutes, come on down!" You only have integrity once. - imprezaguy02 | |||
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I still have a land line and use it more than my cell phone. Having a 3 story townhome & detached garage it is more convenient to have 4 phones. Also I make many overseas calls and the land line really is an internet line that allows overseas calls at almost nothing. I did ditch AT&T for the internet line many years ago. __________________________________________________ If you can't dazzle them with brilliance, baffle them with bullshit! Sigs Owned - A Bunch | |||
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We let the land line go a few years ago. AT&T said that a copper land line would no longer be offered after the service disconnects. All U-verse or whatever now. Months ago someone cut down and stole a section from two of four of the big telephone cables nearby. There seems to be no effort being made to repair them. Dinosaurs. “That’s what.” - She | |||
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| Eschew Obfuscation |
We got rid of ours 10+ years ago. By then the wife and I never used it, and only made and received calls on our cell phones. One day after getting another spam call, it dawned on me that we never made calls and the only calls that came in were from telemarketers. I had it turned off the next day and never missed it at all. _____________________________________________________________________ “One of the common failings among honorable people is a failure to appreciate how thoroughly dishonorable some other people can be, and how dangerous it is to trust them.” – Thomas Sowell | |||
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Member |
I remember when I dropped mine, probably 15-ish years ago now. It was a little strange at first not having it, but that passed pretty fast. I don't miss it at all. | |||
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| Page late and a dollar short |
Fifty plus years ago I worked in a car dealership in the city (Detroit) that had a direct phone line that at one time had been a carry out pizza and rib place. Monday nights if it was slow the parts manager would let some of us leave, first come first served and I was too late. So take one pissed off hippie, working until nine P.M. and dead slow, a recipe for disaster for someone. So phone rings, I answer “Hello Parts” and the guy starts rattling off a order. Again I say “Parts Department”, didn’t stop him a bit. So I take the order, I ask if he wants to pick it up or delivery, he gives an address. Asks how long, I tell him forty five minutes. That was 1971, think he gave up on that order by now. -------------------------------------—————— ————————--Ignorance is a powerful tool if applied at the right time, even, usually, surpassing knowledge(E.J.Potter, A.K.A. The Michigan Madman) | |||
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