feature phone | Fat Wallet Refugee

How do you know when it’s time to unplug? What do you do to make it happen?

Hmm, maybe when my wrist hurts? My back is sore? Or when my jaw seizes up from clenching too long?

Gaming woes to be sure.

Actually, I am quite happy to be connected and “plugged” in.

I recently finished a 14 month suspension from smartphone usage and I must say, life with a feature phone is tough.

Not only did I have to give up mobile gaming but I also encountered many difficulties navigating modern life, which is more and more connected these days.

While I had heard of people being unable to shop or dine without a smartphone or QR code readers, it was not until I experienced it for myself that I realized how much of an issue it could be.

The fast food industry is moving to digital and doing away with cashiers and even cash acceptance.

It’s not just restaurants either, the other day I went to a pharmacy and found only self checkouts and not an employee in sight.

There was actually someone there, but they could have passed for a ninja, as I barely noticed them as I left.

My Charles Schwab and Sofi accounts were inaccessible, except via PC, during my unplugged period. The same was true of my other brokerage service’s and a myriad of apps I installed for offers on Swagbucks.

As I write this on my Samsung galaxy, I am running Windows update on my old Gaming rig. Each update gets me a step closer to being fully connected again.

I am looking forward to slouching in my worn out chair and inviting more sore wrists, clenched jaws, and perhaps even some back pain.

Plug me in and never let me go.

That’s all for now. Thanks for reading.

Comments and questions, please drop them below. Have a great day!

Yesterday, I drove my mother to the airport for her vacation trip to Portugal. I drove her car there and back, a round trip of 70 miles on the fast expressway. The journey there was relatively simple with my mother’s guidance. However, the return journey turned out to be a challenge.

Everyone was driving so fast (70 MPH), so I decided I would hang out in the rightmost lane and go a bit slower. Unfortunately, I realized too late that I was on a Right turn-only exit off of the highway much too early.

I ended up stuck in Briercreek, just outside of a subdivision, and lost inside a shopping area. It took me twenty minutes to finally figure out how to get back to the highway. Not only had I never been to that part of the state, but I also had a clamshell-styled feature phone that could not use apps. I had no map to base my decisions on or a robotic voice to guide me to the highway entrance.

It was a game of eliminations. I managed to drive all the way outside of the shopping area and out into the suburbs where I turned around and backtracked my route. I made several wrong turns until finally, I began to see intersections that looked vaguely familiar.

I’m not sure when it happened, but I realized that the exit from the expressway should also be close to the entrance back onto it. Once I understood that I was able to make my way back to the exit but from the other side of the road. Sure enough, I could see the big blue sign marking the entrance to the 540 highway.

After I got back on I had no qualms with “going fast,” and I kept to the center lane the rest of the way home. It took me two hours to get home instead of one.

When I get my car, later this year, I will get one with onboard navigation. I swear this will never happen again.

Car Adventures (part2)