Old Gadgets

Scott just bought me a new phone. I already had an rather nice pink Razr that I really liked. So I totally didn't need a new phone. But, as I explained to a friend who asked, Scott likes buying me new gadets and I like letting him. My new Blackjack will play Daily Show and music and radio and phone calls. Very sweet. All of this left me with figuring out what to do with my Razr. I have a pretty sweet deal going with my parents and in-laws. Scott and I buy new gadgets and dump our old (to us, anyway) gadgets on them. We don't have to go through the hassle of finding a buyer on eBay or something and they get both a reduced price on the equipment and a seller they trust (I hope). So I called Mom to offer my phone and some other accessories. A few hours later my Dad called to say he had talked to a guy at a Cingular store about changing to a new phone.

Now I love my parents and in-laws, but they generally don't know their way around technology. My mother-in-law needed to know which side of the CD is supposed to face-up and my mom once asked if she could borrow my credit card to make an online purchase because she was worried that hers might get stolen (thanks, mom). My dad, however, really doesn't do technology. And, frighteningly enough, neither do the people at Cingular stores. They are just there to sell stuff. And the Cingular guy told my Dad it would cost over $100 to switch my mom to using my phone, when it is actually free and doesn't require anyone even telling Cingular it happened. (Note: I suspect this is an effective, if completely dishonest, way to get an insurance policy on your phone after it is broken and then cash in on it immediately.) So my dad called sounding a little annoyed at the thought of spending over $100 to switch mom to a new phone. And I almost replied with something along the lines of "Dad, don't go talk to anyone ever again. Just do what I tell you to with your technology and don't ask questions!" I didn't say this of course because it isn't nice, but sometimes it would be soooo much easier than explaining.