Jasonisms

Tomorrow marks two weeks since I broke my OnePlus-1. I've spent more than a few hours reading reviews and watching YouTube videos on a number of replacement devices. It's been a whirlwind of a journey as I debated one feature over another, what is most important to me and what will hold up the longest. There were some caveats, of course. Such as, due to financial restrictions, the device couldn't cost too much and it should work well on my cellular provider's network. The thing is, I like being unique. My truck isn't very common, my motorcycle isn't very common - nothing I do is "follow the pack." When everyone was buying iPhones, I was an early Android adopter. When everyone else had Motorola Razr phones, I had a Blackberry Pearl. Before that the popular phone was the StarTac flip phone and I was sporting the Nokia. I've also always preferred production devices over entertainment ones. I need a powerhouse that allows me to be functional, not p...

Let me preface this by saying I grew up long before cell phones were in everyone's pocket. In fact, I didn't have my first cell phone until I was in my twenties, so I know a thing or two about living without having the world's knowledge at my fingertips. My first day without a cell phone was both frustrating and liberating. It began as all things do - in the beginning: My alarm didn't go off. As it turns out, like many of us, I use my cell phone as an alarm clock, which is convenient since it's on the charger all night next to the bed. Normally in the mornings I'll check for any emails that came in overnight, check the headlines to make sure no one has started World War III and then, maybe if I'm not in a rush, I'll flip through social media to see who's doing all the exciting things I'm not. Or look at pretty pictures. The real inconvenience came when I realized I had no reminder for an appointment. Luckily for me I knew the appointment ...

I titled this "Oops" as though I this was an error. No, this was not an error. This is what happens when your frustrated with a (Google) app constantly not working right and a touchscreen that has decided to have dead spots - spots on the screen that no longer reacted to touch.  Yeah, this was no "Ooops" but rather the result of not having a hammer or rock nearby. I really would have preferred a sledge hammer. So, now I'm in shopping for a new inexpensive phone and have my eye on a 2-2 1/2 year old BlackBerry just because it's cheap (and has a physical keyboard. Oh, how I miss having a physical keyboard!) Heck, I'd even consider the new Nokia if they were out already. In the meantime I'm phone-less. Luckily most people have my Google Voice number where I can send and receive SMS messages, check voicemails and even make and receive calls from my computer. TMo Rep Said They Couldn't Fix That

The problem here is that people become so attached to a single thing and identify themselves by that thing. For some it might be religion, for others a political party and for others still it might be their job or career. A year or so ago I read numerous articles and blog posts about the Samsung Galaxy SIII and how it's new technology far outpaced what Apple's 4S or rumored 5 were going to sport. The iPhone users clutched their devices to their chests like protective parents  Then there was the iPad mini, the long lines awaiting the iPhone 5 and Samsung's mocking commercial extolling the virtues of the Galaxy SIII over the lines of people waiting for the i-5. For years Apple fanboys (or as I call them, iWhores) have strutted about the developed world exalting their device as being above and beyond anything else available -- a better physical handset and a better software experience -- better than Blackberry, better than clamshell phones, better than Nokias and P...

I walk the dogs in the morning, I walk the dogs in the afternoon and I walk the dogs in the evening. Sometimes they're more than an hour walk and sometimes they're about 20 to 30 minutes. Each and every time, though, I feel naked if I don't bring my cell phone along with me. Not that I cannot be without my phone. I think it has more to do with watching Law & Order  franchises and other crime dramas. It's not that I cannot be untethered from my phone it's that feeling that Murphy's Laws will take the reigns and that one time I'm without contact to the police or other emergency services I'm going to need to call for help or to report something. That feeling kind of annoys me. Didn't we all, well most of us all, used to live without cell phones? Didn't we used to have to walk or run to the nearest phone when an emergency occurred? I remember in the late 90s (pre cell phone) when I was walking near my mother's house in Florida when I not...