What to do?

Hi
Sorry I've not been here much, I'd love to say I've been busy writing away in a feverish frenzy, or sunning myself on a glamorous holiday.



(I wish!) Alas no, I've been decorating -yawn. Painting walls, glossing the doors, wall papering. Finally almost done, just the ceiling on the landing to paint.

I haven't written anything new for two weeks! I did send a story to a competition, it's one of the first short stories I wrote, back in 2002 ish, but I haven't been able to place it anywhere, I'm very fond of it though, so haven't given up on it yet.

Anyway I have just been thinking about how reliant I've become on my mobile phone. The other day, I had a short errand to run in the car, did that, then on the way back, I decided to pop in the supermarket for some chocolate (as I do frequently). I thought I'd call home, see if anyone wanted anything and...no!!! The bag was empty (not totally empty obviously, there were till receipts, bits of tissues, sweet wrappers and my lipgloss, but no phone! I must confess to an immediate panic. Had I dropped it? Left it in the car? Had somone sneakily taken it from my bag? Of course not, idiot, you left it on the sofa! I replied to myself.

Ok, so no big deal, I bought the usual bits and bobs that are normally requested of me and hurried back to the car. I hurried because I realisse they'd be wondering where was, as I hadn't said I would be off shopping. Then on the way home I found myself thinking, 'what if the car breaks down?'
Honestly. I felt alone without the little pocket sized assistant. Then I thought, 'Get a grip, woman! How did we ever manage before?'

Well that's true. When I was young I'd set off to school with a 'bye' to mum and that was that, they had to assume I'd safely walk the half mile to school, safely remain at school all day, safely walk home from school and be safely home at 4 o clock. Now though, when anyone leaves the house, what do I say?
"Have you got your phone?"

Ah, the mobile phone. They were quite a rarity back in the day, huge brick weight things, that cost a fortune to buy, not to mention to actually use! Then along came Pay-as-you-go and gradually we all have a phone, camera, diary, calculator, gaming console, mp3 and moble internet in something so small you can pop it in your jeans pocket. But what if it runs out of battery or ahem, gets left on the sofa at home. What do you do in an emergency? Do many of us actually know the numbers we have stored in out phones? (I do now, but I didn't the other day)

So, my recommended emergency measures :
1.Memerising the most important numbers in your phone, so that you can use a phone box should your battery be flat.

2.Carrying a charger in your car (this only works if you have got the phone with you)

3. If you haven't got the phone, you could hope and pray that a public phone box exists somewhere in the vicinity. (There's only one near where I live, there used to be four. BT know they aren't needed. Why? Because we all have mobile phones. Grrrgh!)

4.If you're lucky enough to break down near a shopping area, you could just purchase a new phone for about twenty quid! Then again, if the shops are nearby and open, chances are you can ask to use a phone anyway. Save your twenty quid, you can go shopping while you wait for help to arrive!

5.If all else fails and there is no phone around, you may have to risk asking a passer by for help, also hoping and praying that said passer-by is not one of those people with psycopathic tendancies, that the mobile phone is meant to protect us from...How exactly? I suppose you could throw it at an assailant and run for it (that might have been better when they weighed as much as a brick)

Yes, I know, no help whatsoever.