Text Me, Maybe

I was having issues with my phone. I guess for a while my phone thought I didn't need to see the texts that people sent me. It kinda stinks, because my preferred method of contact is texting. It's also odd because it only seemed to be between my carrier and one other carrier.

I didn't even know until today. I texted my friend last night to see if she would shoot me (our code for giving me my shot because I can't reach my own arms), and she didn't answer me. I figured she was busy, no biggie, I'd do it myself. This morning, my phone rings, and it's my friend who never texted me back. Except she did text me back, and I didn't get the text. Or the one after that, or the next. Her husband texted me, and her daughter texted me, too. I didn't get their texts, either. So we finish our conversation, hang up from the call, and my phone starts going bonkers. I got 13 texts in a row, all from the same family. Some were the ones that were sent last night, some from earlier in the morning.

Today, it seemed to resolve itself, and I'm so grateful. It's not that I don't like to talk to people exactly, but sometimes I just don't feel like being on the phone. Sometimes having a phone conversation seems like work, even when I love the person I'm talking to. I feel guilty about that, but it feels like I'm expending energy to talk on the phone, yet I don't feel that way when I'm talking to people face to face. I won't bother to ask if you think that's weird; I know it's weird.

It's strange to think just how much I rely on my phone. Of course, I have my Google calendar, and that's a Godsend. I also have a great feature in texting menu that allows me to schedule texts for a later time. For example, my cousin asked me to remind her of something (which is funny, because my memory is like a colander), so I composed the text, selected scheduling from the menu, and chose the date and time to send the text. Now, I can remind her without having to remember to remind her. I'll send myself texts if there's something I don't want to forget. Maybe a story idea, something I remembered I wanted to look up or do, whatever.

In a pinch, I'll use my phone to read thanks to Google Play Books. I have a Scrabble-type game on there, music apps, shopping apps, and a bunch of other stuff, too.

There are two shopping apps I wouldn't be without. First is the Wegmans app. For those of you who aren't lucky enough to have a Wegmans near you, this is what we all rave about: https://www.wegmans.com/

The Wegmans app lets you create a grocery list, lets you check off what you've bought, and gives you the price and location of the item specific to the store you're in. It also sorts your list according to the store layout. I used to always forget my list, now I don't because it's on my phone. You can also create your list on a computer, and it updates to the app, as long as you're signed in.

The other app I use often is the Cartwheel app from Target. Coupons are something I always forget, and on the rare occasion I do remember to bring them, I usually forget to use them. The Cartwheel app is on my phone, so I don't forget it. Pair that with the RedCard, and you can get some good deals. If you don't know about the RedCard, it saves you 5% off of your entire order every time you use it, even if you use a Cartwheel on something. 5% may not seem like a whole lot, but it's better than getting nothing. You can use a RedCard linked with your checking account if you prefer not to have another credit card, and you still get 5%.

I can do more on my phone than I could with my first two computers combined. And I do. I used to be a little embarrassed about how much I rely on my phone, but it's like the Day-Timers of the 80's and 90's. Except on my phone, I don't have to worry about how scrawly my writing is. I forget a lot less than I used to, that's for sure.

My writing has gotten really bad, and my hand writes things I don't intend to write. Like I was addressing an envelope the other day, writing the number 34, except my hand wrote 37. I was writing my return address, I used the zip of 14200. That's not my zip code. So when I don't have to write by hand, I'm a happy girl.