Good Morning and welcome to a Winter Wonderland!

That snow out there this morning looks nice, but it's not causing many problems. The main streets are just wet.
The big debate out there is the use of cell phones in cars. The state wants to ban the use. You are not supposed to be able to drive and talk in New Jersey or Philadelphia (if you look, though, it doesn't appear anybody is paying attention to that ban).
I try not to use the phone in the car. On the rare exception it does ring, thank you, Caller ID inventor) I let it go through the voice mail.
Now, I know the cell phone has made our life a bit easier. If there is an accident or a problem, it's a lot easier than knocking on doors to make a call.
Driving and talking (or texting!), still doesn't seem right. I know people do it all the time, but we somehow survived all those years without being plugged in.
Then again, pretty soon Apple will no doubt have a phone and lap top right on our dashboard, so better get with the program.

Good Morning and welcome to a whole new week!

A couple of weeks ago, as Kathleen was preparing for her trip to Iraq, we went out and upgraded to an iPhone.
The thinking was a 'smart' phone, as they are called, would be easier to carry around than a phone and a camera. Plus, with the Internet at a touch of a finger, she wouldn't have to carry a laptop on helicopters.
So, we got the iPhone (scaring the salesperson after telling him we were taking it to Iraq). Got it set up with an international roaming plan (cell phone companies get you where ever and whenever they can).
So, she has the iPhone in Iraq. She was able to use the camera part, but never the phone. Apparently, there are some in the Middle East who still hate Americans. They can track cell phone usage. So, Americans are told not to use the cell phone to make calls ever.
After finding that out (in an e-mail), I was resigned to two weeks of e-mail back-and-forth.
That's when I was able to discover how to 'chat' online using gmail. It's like using the phone only typing and both of you can 'talk' at the same time. And, yes, those of you out there who can't believe it, you can connect with anybody all over the world.
So, I'm beginning to think you might not need a phone at all.
Of course, this is a little ridiculous: