Reactionary cuss I am, for years I've had my eye out for a old-fashioned black rotary-dial desk telephone like the one I dimly remember in the house I grew up in; that would be a Western Electric Model 302, in the off chance you're interested. Unfortunately, old telephones are highly collectible, even fairly common ones like the 302, hence they are also highly priced and I could never bring myself to shell out the big bucks usually asked for them, especially if they worked. Last week, up Bovina way, I happened on a yard sale and there, nestled among the old percolators one always finds at those things, was a gently used Model 302 for sale for the princely sum of $5.00. The seller couldn't warrant it worked but claimed it had the last time he used it--twenty-five years ago. So I took a chance. It worked fine except the ringer was silent and a slight rewiring of the guts fixed that. I love the thing: it weighs a ton and has a loud but cheerful bell that will wake the dead. This particular phone is 54 years old and will likely outlast me.
It probably comes as no surprise I am not a fan of cell phones. I actually have one but it's the cheapo kind and you pay for every call made or received so it's just for emergencies. The only good reason I can see for upgrading would be for the ability to download ringtones, some of which are truly marvelous, this one especially: the Infidelphone which you can listen to here (Warning: not safe for politically correct workplaces or if you happen to be in a mosque).
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