Favorite Button.

There aren't many buttons on my cell phone, but one I like using much more than the others. It's located on the top right of the phone, and operating it always brings a smile to my face.

It turns the phone off.

I understand it also turns the phone back on, but that wouldn't make me happy. Since I work in a place that doesn't allow cell phones, I get to use this button on a regular basis.

I don't like cell phones. I only got one because they took away all of the pay phones. My first cell phone was a prepaid flip phone with no special features. I rarely had to charge it, and only bought minutes when the ones I had were about to expire. It was there for emergencies only while I was out on the bike. Very, very few people had the number for the phone, and it rarely rang. Life was good. I had a tool that did its intended function and nothing more. I wanted a phone, not a social networking/game console. I didn't want my approach to interfacing with the rest of the world revolutionized. Part of the reason I was on the bike was to avoid interfacing with the rest of the world. Inter-connectivity is overrated.

Then my wife convinced me to take her old iPhone, adding me to the family plan that was supposed to result in great savings put was actually more expensive.

My need or desire for a smartphone is non-existent. I only recently started texting with it, and still find the act abhorrent. The vast majority of the aps on it are unused. Despite my limited use of the device, it still requires frequent charging (even after replacing the battery).

It's an annoyance, especially when it rings while I'm on the bike in heavy traffic, in the middle of an interval, or descending at high speed. It's rarely an important call, and it's usually from my wife. She gets very mad when I don't have it on when I'm on the bike, but has learned to be patient when I don't answer immediately. Or on the fifth or sixth call. I'll get back to you eventually. I've learned to gauge the importance of the call by how close the retries are.

I must admit I have used it to look up the complex and multifaceted workouts on Training Peaks David Arteaga has me doing. I am just used to having one or two sets of a specific interval per workout, but his are layered in a way that my aged brain can't possibly recall- especially when oxygen-deprived. So, the device has this going for it.

Still, I have been tempted by those cell phones for elderly people with the big buttons and loud speakers. No aps. No texting.

Just a phone.

Put a long, coiled handset cord on it, add a rotary dial, and stick it in booths all over town and I'd be perfectly happy.



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