A ramble about communication

I had a rotten night's 'sleep'. So, at 4.15 a.m. after six hours of tossing and turning I got up. but who is complaining when this is what greets you? Not me.


A headland of Bayble Bay and the mountains of the mainland of North Western Scotland as seen from GB's on the Isle of Lewis with the sun about to rise at 4.15 a.m.


As anyone who has followed my blog closely will know I have all sorts of crazy passions. One of them is for letter boxes. The nearest letter box to Brother-who-blogs is in Lower Bayble and qualifies as one of my favourites. It is a fairly ordinary lamp letterbox but unlike the mainland ones it has a flap attached to keep the weather out when it's blowing a hooly. that however is not what makes it special. It is, as the estate agents would put it, 'Location, location, location'. Not only is it next to a smartly painted outhouse but the view over Bayble Bay is superb. I shall have to think about my other favourite boxes and do a separate post about them some time.

On a completely different topic; people are either amused, bewildered or pitying that I no longer answer the home telephone or make phone calls - except to family and close friends and even then sparingly. For someone who did a lot of his work on the phone I have become totally allergic to it since I retired. Is it any surprise, I ask myself.....


"This is the fault line for XXX. If you would like to report a fault, press one.
"You have pressed one. If this means you would like to report a fault, press one again.
"Thank you. You have indicated you would like to report a fault.
"The number to dial to report faults is O845 00000000.
"This is the fault line for XXX. If you would like to report a fault, press one.
"You have pressed one. If this means you would like to report a fault, press one again.
"Thank you. You have indicated you would like to report a fault.
" If you are a moron, press one. If not, press one.
"You have pressed one. Please confirm that the equipment is switched on. If the switch is in the on position press one. If not, press two (you moron!)
"You have pressed one. If you are getting thoroughly peed off with recorded voices press 9 and wait for twenty minutes; someone three thousand miles may then talk to you....

No thanks. I'll stick to using my e-mails and letter boxes!
 :

Telephones

More than 50% of the people in the world have never made or received a telephone call. But in the USA it is estimated that 4 million "junk" telephone calls - phone solicitations by persons or programmed machine - are made every day!