This Just Goes To Show You....What An Idiot I Can Be...LOL
By pyewacket
@pyewacket (43903)
United States
April 28, 2009 6:20pm CST
Okie dokie. I like to pride myself that I'm fairly tech savvy, but even this geek has to admit some things will get me batty and make me feel like a real friggin idiot.
Up until now, I didn't have a cell phone. Yes a friend of mine gave me one some three years ago, but when it died out on me never bothered to get a new one. I'm just not a cell phone person. If I want to make calls, I make them on my landline, in the privacy of my own home, so the world isn't listening to my private conversations like people who constantly have cell phones stuck to their ears and walking along the street.
Well recently I decided to take advantage of that SafeLink program which is a government program to allow people who receive SSI benefits, or food stamps, Medicaid or have a very low income. The deal is, one gets a FREE phone (worth about $9.99 and a Motorola type) and FREE minutes each month, usually about 68 minutes average a month....whatever minutes aren't used are rolled over to the next month. The whole idea of this offer, is to provide benefits recipients or low-income families to have a free cell phone FOR EMERGENCIES only....So in other words, not to use it to yak away and make hour long phone calls to people...One CAN buy additional minutes, but that kind of defeats the purpose, especially someone like me who wouldn't be able to afford to buy extra minutes.
Anyway, so this tech genius here (c'est moi)--got the phone and decided to activate it. Okay, I'm following the instructions exactly, right? But then I'm noticing.....like duh? They didn't give me a phone number for my phone. WHAT THE HECK MY PHONE NUMBER????
Feeling frustrated and wanting to throw the damn thing out the window, I emailed the company....but since I have that "never give up" attitude, decided to monkey around with the phone a bit more....and this just goes to show you how cell phone savvy I am...NOT
Okay, I'm now puttering around with the menu....and yup, there was a feature that said "Phone Number"---uh, mmmm
Do I now feel like a real idiot?? Uh, yup.
Okay, folks am I an idiot or what? Are you laughing here? I am. Have you ever done something stupid like this? What should be maybe a simple thing to figure out completely baffles you, until maybe you start "puttering" around even more to figure it out? Are you an idiot? Tell me your idiot stories...I'm all ears.
Feeling frustrated and wanting to throw the damn thing out the window, I emailed the company....but since I have that "never give up" attitude, decided to monkey around with the phone a bit more....and this just goes to show you how cell phone savvy I am...NOT
Okay, I'm now puttering around with the menu....and yup, there was a feature that said "Phone Number"---uh, mmmm Do I now feel like a real idiot?? Uh, yup.
Okay, folks am I an idiot or what? Are you laughing here? I am. Have you ever done something stupid like this? What should be maybe a simple thing to figure out completely baffles you, until maybe you start "puttering" around even more to figure it out? Are you an idiot? Tell me your idiot stories...I'm all ears.12 people like this
30 responses
@mysdianait (66009)
• Italy
29 Apr 09
I have got a bit better with cell phones these days but Ihaven't got one of the recent models so I will get into a pickle if I ever get one of those (which I doubt).
I get idiot moments with my computer, especially when I have to plug in all the things at the back after moving. I did my diagram as I took them all out so that when I moved it I could put them all in the right holes and I thought I had been so clever. Then I started it up and... no sound from the speakers! So I moved all the plugs about, swapping them over and it went on for ages and I was convinced I would have to call someone in to fix it - until I noticed the speakers were not even switched to 'on'
If you had phoned your landline from your new cell phone would the number have shown up on your landline? Mine show the number that is calling even before I answer. Just a thought 
If you had phoned your landline from your new cell phone would the number have shown up on your landline? Mine show the number that is calling even before I answer. Just a thought 6 people like this
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
29 Apr 09
LOL--That kind of reminds me of something similar. Some years ago I decided to paint the living room. I wanted to paint behind the entertainment center I had...a real tall heavy thing. My then still alive mother thought I was nuts, and thought, why not just paint "around" it....but being the perfectionist I am thought nope, wanted to paint the whole wall behind it. I had to take literally everything out of the entertainment center to make it lighter so I could swing out the center from being right up the wall. It also meant disconnecting all the lines...cable, DVD, VCR, TV..everything...so thought I was being "smart" and put labels on each cable/jack line to identify where everything went. Okay, now I'm painting, then let the wall dry. Now it's time to rehook everything, right? Ekkk....somehow those labels fell off all the lines---you think I was doing brain surgery to get the right hook-ups and connections...finally did...after about a full hour!
As for getting the phone number on my landline..nope. My landline phone is a no-frills kind of thing too with no LCD display to show the phone number that is calling in
As for getting the phone number on my landline..nope. My landline phone is a no-frills kind of thing too with no LCD display to show the phone number that is calling in4 people like this
@guybrush (4658)
• Australia
29 Apr 09
I'd never laugh at anyone having trouble with a damn phone, Pye - I'm hopeless with mine (which was only purchased so I could keep in touch with my daughter when she was doing a 4,000km road trip by herself in her little car) - and to be honest, I don't even know how to answer (or make) an ordinary phone call on it! The only part I can use is the text message function - and most of the time the phone sits on my desk and is never used. I have $30 credit on a 365 day plan - this amount lasts me nearly a year, as the only time the phone is used is if one of the kids is travelling and I like to know where they are and that they're safe each night. When my daughter did her road trip - which was from one end of the country to the other - I made her text me every lunch break and every night when she safely arrived at motels or air bases. Then I could sleep easy until the next day when she was back on the road. I actually HATE phones. Our landline has a caller ID, so if I don't recognise the number, I don't answer it. I can't understand how young people let their phones rule their lives - my son can't live without his phone stapled to his ear! Go figure!
5 people like this
@GardenGerty (160696)
• United States
29 Apr 09
Your secret is out, and so is mine. I use caller ID to screen calls. I also refuse to talk to my staff if they are calling my phone and will not speak to the machine. I do not text and I have a tracfone. When I TRY to listen to any voice messages it just eats minutes up.
4 people like this
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
29 Apr 09
You and I have something in common...I hate phones in general as well. Heck I rarely even use my landline phone. Unlike you though I don't have caller ID on it but have my answering machine on 24/7...that way my message machine acts as a screening device. If I don't recognize the caller or number won't answer
3 people like this
@BarBaraPrz (47332)
• St. Catharines, Ontario
29 Apr 09
Oh, I wouldn't call you an idiot for that... I wouldn't know either what the number was if it wasn't written down. I've only ever used a cell phone once in my life, and someone else had to make the call for me.
I had heard about that free cell phone program, though, and wondered if you would take advantage of it. I'm assuming it's a very basic model, no camera?
3 people like this
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
29 Apr 09
Yup--it's a real no frills model that's worth about $9.99, so nope, no camera. Do they have that type of program where you are??
3 people like this
@BarBaraPrz (47332)
• St. Catharines, Ontario
29 Apr 09
No, having a phone is not considered a basic need.
1 person likes this
@sid556 (30960)
• United States
29 Apr 09
That's funny but to be honest, I just recently got a track phone just for emergencies and what not. I did almost the same thing but luckily my older daughter was here and knew about these things and saved me before I contacted the company.
Idiot things? Heck, I could write an idiot's guide to being an idiot. You reach a point where you just have to laugh at yourself, ya know.
Idiot things? Heck, I could write an idiot's guide to being an idiot. You reach a point where you just have to laugh at yourself, ya know. 4 people like this
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
29 Apr 09
LOL--maybe we should collaborate and write An Idiot's Guide to Being An Idiot...or one of those "Dummies" books...heehee (actually those Dummies books helped me figure out how to use computers when I was first learning)
3 people like this
@alicia812 (646)
• Australia
29 Apr 09
Oh Pye, you gave me a good laugh early in the morning. So, did you get your cellphone number now??? Usually it's written on the SIM card of the phone or find it somewhere in manual. If you can't find it, ask a friend who's got a cellphone for her number, ring her using your mobile, and then your number will appear on her cellphone..so there you can get your number.... I don't have a story to tell as funny as this...but I always forget my cellphone number too and this is what I do to get my number.
4 people like this
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
29 Apr 09
No I looked and the phone number wasn't on the SIM card, nor in the manual...it wasn't until I pressed the "menu" and went down the listings, that it actually said "phone number"--pressed that and bingo...there was my phone number...LOL
3 people like this
@alicia812 (646)
• Australia
29 Apr 09
Ah ok, that's good your number is automatically listed on your phone. I remember I had to ring my sister just to ask her what number appeared on her phone when I rang so I can get my number. She was laughing at me.
It takes time to get used to it and learn when you are not really that much interested in high tech gadgets. And that free mobile program is very good Pye. I'm impressed.
4 people like this
@Anora_Eldorath (6028)
• United States
29 Apr 09
LOL. I've had plenty as tech and me at times do not see eye to eye. The most recent one was with my son's toy that was supposed to make noise. I couldn't figure out why the bloody thing wasn't coming on, and must have messed with it for an hour or so. Turns out, there was a little tag that was supposed to be removed!
Namaste-Anora
4 people like this
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
29 Apr 09
LOL---I had a dumb experience with my flatbed scanner. It has three modes to it...reflective to scan documents, drawings, print photos, negative to scan negative film, and positive to scan slides. Well one time I was trying to scan some slides...nothing was happening. I tried I don't know how many times, and at first I thought, oh no, maybe it needs to be repaired. What was the problem? I finally figured out that instead of being set on the "positive" mode, it had been set to "reflective"--like duh?
4 people like this
@Anora_Eldorath (6028)
• United States
29 Apr 09
Oh, I've done that many times with my printer. It's got that setting when you push print that will send it to some sort of special file. I spent hours trying to figure out why the document wasn't printing, and then realized I had to select to print to my printer. Those are the days I just shake my head and walk away lol.
Namaste-Anora
3 people like this
@GardenGerty (160696)
• United States
29 Apr 09
I cannot remember one on myself, at this moment. A friend told me Sunday morning though, that she had been using her laptop, online, and her husband borrowed it for a minute or two. When she got it back she was unable to get online, and neither was he.They tried everything, then called a service technician, who came out and showed them a tab that they had inadvertantly slid or button on the side and it disconnects the laptop from the internet. She was pretty embarrassed.
3 people like this
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
29 Apr 09
LOL--It usually is something simple like that as in the case of your friend...or something like not plugging in a device
2 people like this
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
1 May 09
Luckily I didn't have to read the whole manual...but the manual gives info about everything one needs to know about the phone
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
29 Apr 09
The real main problem was that the phone didn't come with a full manual, only a very basic thingie but said nothing about finding a "menu" on the phone...Luckily I managed to find the website where I was able to download the 72-page manual on-line.
@CatsandDogs (13963)
• United States
29 Apr 09
Stop beating yourself up pye!! We all have our "blonde moments" whether we're a blonde or not! lol I AM a blonde and have lots and lots of blonde moments!! LOL I can't think of any right off the top of my head but trust me, I have a lot of them. lol
2 people like this
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
29 Apr 09
LOL--well I must have "blonde" genes somewhere....heehee
@celticeagle (167015)
• Boise, Idaho
29 Apr 09
I am chuckling right along with you. If you haven't experienced something you have to fumble around or read directions [unless you are a man ofcourse] or email someone. How would you know to check menu unless you have tried everything else? I think I would have been even worse because I have never had a cell phone. I use others occasionally but that is all. So, think of it this way. You are more tech savvy than this gal is. And I have to ask each time how the heck I use the stupid thing.
2 people like this
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
29 Apr 09
What I can't get is that when I got the phone it didn't even come with a full manual...just very, very basic stuff and instructions...but guess what? I managed to find a manual on the phone's website itself and downloaded it
2 people like this
@celticeagle (167015)
• Boise, Idaho
29 Apr 09
Maybe that is just something they expect you do. They may not supply you with a manual to save money on the program.
2 people like this
@leenie50 (3992)
• United States
29 Apr 09
Hey pye,
It's a big club so don't feel foolish too long. I too got the phone and put it away and forgot all about it until I saw the commercial on TV. So I go lookong for it and find it stuffed away in the closet. So I started reading and was going to activate it and I can't find the activation card. Everything was in the box but that. I'm assuming it is a separate card like the one on the page. I just decided I'd call and find out what to do. If you have any ideas, let me know.
leenie
1 person likes this
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
29 Apr 09
I didn't get a so-called activation card either....it was just a piece of paper with instructions, something like this
If you have this phone (Motorola W175) and you have not received your free minutes, please follow these steps:
1. Go to the "Prepaid" menu by selecting the MENU key, which is the round key in the center of the navigation keys. Press SELECT.
2. "Add Airtime" will be highlighted. Press SELECT.
3. Dial 555. Then press OK.
4. "Have a promotional code?" should be displayed on your SafeLink Wireless phone screen. Press the key below "NO". Your phone will display a confirmation message.
5. Make sure to keep your SafeLink Wireless phone ON to receive your Minutes.
Of course, it will also depend which type of phone they sent you...did you get the Motorola W175??? It didn't even come with a FULL manual...I had to get that over at the Tracfone website itself--the full manual which I downloaded for the phone is 72 pages long!
1 person likes this
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
29 Apr 09
Let me know what type of phone you got then I can tell you where to download the full manual
1 person likes this
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
1 May 09
Mmmm....this might sound like a dumb question...did you charge up the phone with the charger?---takes awhile...if you did sometime ago,you might need to charge it up again. I might do that again tonight, as supposedly for the first three days of the month, one has to keep the phone on the get the new free minutes beginning each month
1 person likes this
@tamarafireheart (15384)
•
29 Apr 09
Hi pye,
Well at least you have to figure it out all by yourself and gets it right, but for me I just can't get the hang of ne tech thingys and I'm lucky to have a hubby who can do those things, he recently bought a digital camera and it took me a while to learn how to use it and down load it on my computer, I still don't much about it and he also got a new cell phone that takes photos but I wouldn't know how it works. I'm still a bit thick.
Bright Blessings.
Tamara
3 people like this
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
29 Apr 09
LOL--I still use my 35m film camera, but comes the day I do ever get a digital camera, I'll have to learn photography all over again...(groans)
2 people like this
@Opal26 (17679)
• United States
29 Apr 09
Hey pye! I don't think that you are an idiot! How were you
supposed to know where to find the phone number! When I go
my cell phone I had no idea what do with it! It had to be
all put together. The SIM card had to be put in and other
stuff need to be done! I didn't know about that stuff! I
still don't know how to really work it and I've had it for
three years now! I know how to put the money on it and get
the balance, but not much else! Oh, I know how to dial it!
I barely know how to answer it if God forbid it should ring!
So don't feel bad! I think you did better than I would have!
I would have thrown the damn thing across the room for sure!
3 people like this
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
29 Apr 09
Thankfully the SIM card was already installed but did have to put the battery in...I also managed to find a copy of my particular phone manual on-line since it didn't come with a full manual and downloaded it...LOL
1 person likes this
@savak03 (6684)
• United States
5 Jun 09
I got one of those too Pye so I know exactly the model you're talking about. Now I have used tracfone for quite awhile until my daughter talked me into a different prepaid company, which by the way I did not like at all, so I know where to find my number and most anything else I want to do. My problem is that I use it to text mostly cause it costs less to text than to call. Me and my daughter communicate the most by texting each other which I have gotten pretty good at except for one thing. Sometimes in the middle of typing a message I will somehow turn the CAPS on. Since I don't know how I did it I can't turn them back off again. After awhile I will accidentally turn them back off. This has happened several times and I still don't know what I keep doing.
1 person likes this
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
5 Jun 09
Don't think I'll bother with the texting aspect as I don't think it's part of the plan with my phone and don't want to eat up minutes like crazy--I've had my cell phone for awhile now and still haven't used it...I'm trying to accumulate more minutes since each month they automatically add 68 minutes free and the minutes not used is rolled over.
@savak03 (6684)
• United States
5 Jun 09
As I said Pye, I have the same plan. It automatically comes with texting and you can send or receive a text that only cost 1/3 of a unit. Me and my daughter have found that we can send a message that would take several minutes of talk time in one text message so that is what makes it cheaper to text. However texting is not for everyone.
When I first got my safelink I planned to keep it for emergencies too, but for the moment I'm having to use it as my main business phone. I have to be available while I am on the road.
Oh, another thing you might not know. If you do end up having to buy some additional time for the phone they give you bonus minutes. For instance if you buy a 60 unit card you get 100 units. I got a text from the company one day when my balance got low. I was afraid it was only for that one time but every time I add a 60 unit card they give me the bonus. I haven't tried any but the 60.
@carpenter5 (6782)
• United States
30 Apr 09
No, you are not an idiot! Well, let's say that I'm sure we can all find some thing in our life when we didn't exactly qualify as an Einstein.
When I got my new cell phone recently, my daughter had to show me how to transfer my phone numbers using the memory card. I was putting in every number by hand, not realizing you could transfer the numbers to the memory card and transfer them all at the same time.
@scarlet_woman (23463)
• United States
29 Apr 09
usually you have to call them to get a number activated because you have to program the new one in.the real pain in the butt is if it lapses for a while and you have to call them back for a new number.
idiot stories..um..i can't really think of one right now,but i tell you i feel like a idiot when i send my bro to the store for housekeeping stuff and he comes back with some oddball contraption that isn't even close to what i asked for.
i should know by now i practically have to draw him a picture,and that doesn't always work either.
@worldwise1 (14885)
• United States
29 Apr 09
You are not alone, pywacket! Let me tell you about my recent cell phone experience. Like you, I had not owned one of the things for several years, but for some reason I decided that to have one just might be useful since I live a pretty solitary lifestyle. I had problems from the start after ordering the cell phone. I kept waiting and waiting for it to arrive - but, nothing doing. After a couple of weeks of trying to track it I finally discovered that the stupid phone company had sent it out to my address - minus the apartment number. The result was that it had been just sitting at UPS all of this time. Then, when I finally got it my troubles were not over. I followed the instructions on installing the battery and sim card, but the darn thing wouldn't work. It took several days for my daughter to come over because I could not remove the back to get into it again. It turns out that they had given me the wrong sim card number and, naturally, the phone wouldn't work. My real issue though is that the phone has way too much stuff on it that I don't need and would never use, so I've decided to scrap the whole thing once I use all of the minutes on it. All I wanted was a simple phone to have in case of emergencies, but it seems that nothing is simple anymore.
@catdla1 (6005)
• United States
29 Apr 09
Hahaha! Your story reminds me of my first cell phone. I had it for 2 years, and never did learn how to us the dang thing. It was one of the early ones, and just wasn't intuitive for operation. It did come with a 200 page manual, but after a page or two, I'd have an overwhelming desire for a nap. I just don't do manuals. Thankfully I have a son who figures out most things I need to know. That one phone though...had about 5 steps you needed to do just to make one call. I had it for emergencies, and I'm glad I never had one. The menu system on cells now is much better.
Most of my 'feel like an idiot' events centers around not being able to find things when I need them. I have a step-daughter who 'borrows' things without asking, most often my clippers for the pets' nails. Somewhere in her room is probably 7 or 8 pairs of them, because I keep buying new ones, which I've hidden (after the first pair). The 'feel like an idiot' part comes when I can't find them and accuse her of taking them, and then finding that I've missplaced them myself. Once I spent the day looking, including making her look in her room, only to find them in my back pocket. I'd put them there when I first got dressed in the morning...and forgot all about it. I was the queen schmuck that day...lol
@Youreyes4Today (2356)
• United States
29 Apr 09
Your not an idiot, your just learning how it all works. I went through thing simular to that. My daughter gave me a cell, said mom you need to have one with you so if we need to get ahold of you we can. Then someone asked me what my number was, I had no idea either..lol So I asked my daughter to show me.. what she did was find it gave to the friend and that was that. Problem was I had no idea how she found it. So I did as you, just kept looking around in it until I found it. What was good about that is I learned more about it which was good.
1 person likes this
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
29 Apr 09
LOL--least I know how to find the phone number again should I need it...You would think they would have sent a full manual to explain everything (they didn't include a manual but managed to find it on-line and downloaded it)--
@sarah1120 (3)
• United States
29 Apr 09
Well this isn't tech-related, but it is dumb-related. I was out with my boyfriend and we were stopped somewhere getting gas. Well I was like, "Man I wish they made places where you could get gas and then in the same building have a drive through food place..." Well while that isn't a bad idea, the dumb thing is I work in a truck stop where you can get gas, and right in the same building is a drive through resturaunt, Churche's chicken, which is where I work. Man I felt really stupid then. He even realized that I work in that kind of place before I did... I swear I wasn't drunk that day... xP
1 person likes this
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
1 May 09
LOL--your boyfriend must have given you a really strange look when you said that...heehee
