Mobile Phones - Definitely A Necessity

A while ago, I had written a post about whether mobile phones were a necessity or a nuisance. I had concluded that for me at least, it is a necessity. Today I have another story to show that most people should get a mobile, even if you rarely use it. This post will be a half discussive post about mobiles but also a rant because I am fuming mad right now, all because of a mobile phone, or lack thereof.

I had sold a memory card on an online auction. I mistakenly gave the buyer the option of picking it up, to save them a few bucks. The buyer was going to drop by my work place today to pick up the card. I thought nothing of it since I was so busy today. At about 4:40pm, this guy rings me on my mobile (I gave him my mobile number) and says that he is the buyer, but doesn't know how to get to my work place. I was just about to ask him where he was when the phone cut out. I thought that maybe he was in a bad reception area. A few minutes later, he rang again. This time, I managed to find out that he was at a train station. Since I didn't know where that station was, I couldn't direct him on how to get to my work place. Again, after about 30 seconds, the phone cuts out again. I would have rung him back except the number showed up as a private number.

I went back to work and about 5 minutes later, another call from the same guy. This time, I asked him whether he wanted me to call him mobile from my land line at work, maybe the reception would be better this way. Then he said that he didn't have a mobile and was calling from a pay phone. Now how stupid is that. If he had come to my work place, how would he have rung me anyway to let me know he had arrived. Now, he's at a train station and wants direction, but the phone keeps cutting out. After about 5 calls, all I had established was that he was lost. I quickly told him to go to a station where I did know and could meet him there.

I was already in an ultra foul mood at this stage. I had been doing electronic schematic layout all day. Anyone's who's ever done it knows how hard it is to sift through a hundred component specifications to find the right one, inputting the footprints for the PCB etc, it can put you in a really bad mood since your head is overloaded with information. Because this buyer was suppose to come and pick up the card directly and now he wasn't, that made me even more angry. The effort I would have to go to for just a few dollars profit was not worth it. I would have rung him to say that I will post it, but I couldn't because he didn't have a mobile. My work mate Mark told me to just ditch him, but I wasn't that sort of person to make a promise and not keep it if I could.

So I leave work quickly and start driving. At peak hour time, instead of being able to head off into the opposite direction to go home where there was no traffic, I had to go and drive with all the traffic to go and meet someone just to give him a stupid card to earn a few bucks. The traffic and thought of the situation made me curse so much. I must have said more "f**king hells" in that car trip there than I have said all year. The traffic was so bad that it took me forever to cover the fairly short distance. And this guy kept calling me every 5 minutes to see where I was. I was ready to throw my phone out the window and just turn around and drive home. But the thought that I was already on my way made me keep going.

Anyway, I got there, parked my car illegally, rushed out and gave him a blast for his actions, or inactions. He paid me the money and I rushed home, again swearing heaps. I have learnt some vital lessons today, no more pick ups for items sold online, people are tight (it would have cost him $5 for delivery and all this hassle could have been avoided) and that a mobile phone is gold in situations like these.

A mobile phone is really a necessity if you plan on doing any type of business transactions. Even when you are meeting up with people, having the flexibility of a phone is just so reassuring. There's no waiting for hours unsure whether to leave or keep waiting, a simple call can solve everything. So I urge everyone to get a mobile phone, even if you rarely use it. Just buy a pre-paid card so that people can reach you if they need. You don't have to give your number to people you don't want to, and you can always decline incoming calls.