Wiwille goes without cell phone, is unsure of feelings

The other day I experienced a horror to often felt by many, my cell phone battery died, at noon, without a charger in site, and I was at work. Not a huge deal as I did have access to my desk phone and the internet of course, but I had to make the perilous journey to run errands and then make it home, all without a phone with me. My wife's battery was biting the tool as well, so it only made sense to make my first stop to purchase two batteries. I thought if I really need to get a hold of someone, I could use a payphone, but then again outside of an airport I can't recall the last time I've laid eyes on a phone that requires coins to use.

 

So I decided to head down to the place where I've purchased all my cell phone and cell phone accessories, the AT&T store. I get out of my car and a salesman saw me walk up and opened and held the door open for me. He then asked me if I needed help, and I told him I was looking for new cell phone batteries for my wife and I. He then stopped and told me they no longer carried batteries. I glanced around the store and saw every other kind of object related to the use of a cell phone, from headphones to all kinds of chargers, and was mildly perplexed that they no longer carry them. I asked them when this policy took place, which was a waste of breath as the fact remained there were no batteries there even if he said ten minutes ago. He told me they haven't sold those kind accessories in a while. I explained that a battery is no more of an accessory than an engine is to my car, as it's a vital component to make it function as advertised, but that was unfair to the salesman as he was just repeating a speech he's made a hundred times and just misspoke, and I was wasting his time. He then had a moment of honesty and told me the company would rather sell a new phone than a battery, which makes sense. He referred me to a place called Batteries Plus, an establishment I'm not at all familiar with, but thanked him for his time and made my exit.

 

In the shopping complex is a Best Buy, which I recalled sells cell phones, so I stopped by to see if they could help. I walked in and a guy offered his assistance and I told him what I was looking for. He looked at me quizzically, then stated that was a good question, which was weird, because I phrased it as a statement, but whatever. Anyways he asked a co-worker if they sold cell phone batteries, the co-worker then looked at me and said the best place to go would be Batteries Plus.

 

Sigh.

 

So I go to Target to pick up some things, but that morning the wife asked me to call her when I got there, and the store did not have a pay phone. So I picked up my items and went home.

 

Nothing of consequence happened when I was without a cell phone, nor as a result of it. Still I felt a twinge of paranoia, as if something critical would happen and I would be none the wiser. Whether it would be something involving the family, or a cataclysmic world event, I felt the fear of not being informed, whether my knowledge would be of any benefit  to anyone or not didn't matter to me. But then I thought to myself I've lived without a cell phone for 28 years, and I survived just fine, but yet I developed an unhealthy addiction to my information gateway, and it's been giving me the illusion of security, and maybe the delusion that I matter in all manners.

 

"Apparently we love our own cell phones but we hate everyone else's." - Joe Bob Briggs