Like most people, nowadays we have a landline as well as mobile phones and use both equally.  As technology becomes more and more sophisticated, I become more and more befuddled. I do know how to use some of the features of both, but mainly I use them to make phone calls (surprisingly), send texts and take photos. I have once tried to compose a post on my phone but it went horribly wrong, and I ended up raging at the bloody thing (after all it is the phone’s fault and not mine of course)!

Anyway, a rather strange thing happened a while ago, I was on annual leave, and Mr Grump rang me on my mobile to tell me to get ready as he was picking me up after finishing work. He asked why I didn’t pick up the home phone, and I told him because it didn’t ring, that’s why! He said it rang for an instant then gave the engaged signal, was I on to the phone to someone else or did I just cut him off?

I hadn’t done either. Obviously, he didn’t take my word for it, and when he came home, he rang the landline from his mobile, engaged. That was a bit odd. I made sure the line was clear, it was. He tried again, engaged I tried it, ring, ring. Funny, I could get through but he couldn’t

Oh, that was it, we had to detour to the bloody EE mobile phone shop in town to see what was wrong with his stupid phone! I hate these places. Trendy, young sales assistants who are all up with the latest gadgets, give the, “Oh, God don’t let them come to me” look to each other as we approach the front desk.

The unlucky loser was a young woman with the kind of two haircuts in one style that is so popular at the moment. She listened disinterestedly as poor old Grump gave her a rather lengthy explanation of what was wrong.  I could see her eyes glazing over, and that she was itching to snatch the phone off of Mr Grump so she could look at it herself.  After a few swipes of the screen here and there, she handed it back and said in a bored monotone, “there is nothing wrong with it at all, the settings are all fine, and there are no blocks on it.”

Great, that was really helpful. Mr Grump muttered his thanks, and then later on when we were at home asked me to ring Talk Talk our landline provider to find out what the problem was. I went selectively deaf for a while, why the hell did I have to do it!

Anyway, the next day he went on about it again so, when he came home, I moodily rang them. Well, of course, I didn’t get anywhere. The automated system asked me the wrong questions, and from the answers, it insisted on getting, I was told robotically that they would test my line and text me back.  They did an hour later, nothing wrong.

I phoned again, pressed different buttons and gave what must have been the right answers as I actually got a person! Mind you; I think they thought I was a bit simple and said they would also check the line, but I got my own back on Grump and made him talk to the bloke and tell him the problem he was having with his phone! I don’t know what was going on, but he had my phone, his phone and the landline, and still, it didn’t work. He couldn’t ring the landline and I could. More tests would be carried out and Grump was fuming.

I picked up the landline phone to ring my sister, and as is usual I pressed a few wrong buttons trying to find the address book part. I noticed something, though. There was a screen and on it was a folder ‘blocked numbers,’ I selected it, and there was poor old Mr Grump’s phone number! God knows how it had got there, but I managed to erase it from the folder. Mr Grump dialled the home phone, and it rang!

How I love technology!