Can Not Be Completed As Dialed

Does everyone remember how I hate my cell phone? No, that is a lie. I don’t hate my phone.

I found my cell phone in a rental car. And after finding out that the phone had been cancelled, I took it home to start our new life together. (The guy that had the phone before me only had one number in his address book…Taco. I am not sure if he knows the coolest guy in the world…isn’t that the best name/nickname, or if he was just a really big fan of Taco Bell.)

I love the personalized rings (it makes it a lot easier to screen calls, I love that it has all the numbers of everyone I could possibly ever talk to, and some that I will never speak to again, but just feel so bad taking their number out of my phone, that it is the same size as my ipod and together they like a pair with all the dents and scratches they both have.

But what I don’t love is the extremely overpriced bill that comes to my house every month. Every month I think, “I didn’t use my cell phone that much, did I? Why is my bill so thick? Roaming charges? I really checked my voicemail 134 times!?!”

I never am quite sure if I am overusing my cell phone, or if I picked the wrong plan, or if I am being gouged for no good reason. Every month I make the vow to only make important phone calls on my cell, or to not send so many text messages, but it never really works.

Part of the problems comes as:

1. Welcome to my generation. The cell phone generation. I am always quasi upset when I have to call someone on a house phone. (Or to make it worse, their family’s house phone!) Everyone has a cell phone, and only people that live with their moms (I still love you.) have house phones.

2. Life on the fly. Being YSA, plans are never really set in stone and what you do, and who you do it with depends on your availability. How easy it to change your plans and be able to call someone no matter where they are to tell them plans have changed. What if you want to have a party? All you need is one mass text message, and you will have more friends than you know what to do with.

3. Cell phones. AKA: The watch of the 2000s. Seriously, my cell phone is my information centre. If ever I need to know what time it is, what the date is, someone’s phone number, or even calculate a tip, there is my cell phone, handy with all of this information. My cell phone also works as my alarm clock and a good way to get out of weird conversations. (Much better than smacking your head.) Plus if there is secret, what better way than text messaging?

All I am looking for is lower cell phone bills. A new phone that is just as fun as the one I have now, not over pretentious. Heck, I will even keep my old phone if I have to! And maybe someway of keeping my old phone number.

When I talk to people about their cell phone providers, everyone has some sort of horror story. “Oh, never go with Company A. I love Company B.” or “Company C has a bigger range so your calls aren’t dropped like Company D.”

Any suggestions would be helpful.