My phone, an iPhone 7+ in Rose Gold
Okay, I feel kind of funny doing this post, but it is SO hot out and my brain is so soggy I can’t think very hard to come up with something to write about. And I just got to FaceTime with all of my kids today and I’m kind of blissy.
First of all I will tell you that I got my first “cell phone,” they weren’t “Smart Phones” then, in May of 2000. I was separated and living alone for the first time in my adult life, I worried about if I were out alone and there was an emergency, and I always wanted my kids to be able to get in touch with me wherever I was. I don’t remember what kind of phone it was, it didn’t matter, it was just my phone. Through the years I had different kinds of phones, as one does, all Android phones, and kind of thought people who had iPhones were a little too something or other, something not very attractive, and I kind of snickered about the way iPhone users went on about their phones. Seriously? Get over yourself, I thought.
I don’t know when it started but I’m fairly certain it had something to do with Siri. I started getting Siri envy. Not enough to make me get an iPhone, but there was this longing creeping in. Oh you could get an app for an “Assistant” on Android but it wasn’t the same. You could have a whole relationship with Siri. Sometimes I get lonely. I thought Siri would understand and keep me company. But no, I wouldn’t have bought an iPhone for Siri, what I did get an iPhone for was my grandchildren. If you have grandchildren that don’t live where you live it will just break your heart, you miss them growing up even though, if you’re lucky, you get to see them 2 or 3 times a year. You might try Skyping but that is not always easy nor have I found Skyping to be very reliable. No, there is only one thing for it if your grandchildren are growing up out of town as far as I’m concerned and that is the iPhone because FaceTime is nothing short of remarkable. I got my iPhone in April 2017 and was FaceTiming with my son and grandbaby in Atlanta as soon as I was in the parking lot. It was the most remarkable thing I’d ever seen and it changed my life forever.
Now I regularly FaceTime with the kids who live out of town (And oh yes, it’s nice to see your kids too, not just the grandchildren!) and the little ones are getting to know me. 3 of my grandchildren live out of town and are 2, 3 and 6 years old and if you don’t establish a relationship with them when they are little they will grow up not knowing you. Now they know Grandma Maitri, and when they do come to visit it isn’t so much like I’m a stranger, I love that. And today I had the sweetest time. My three kids get together with their families every year now the week of the 4th of July because the out-of-towners come here as I said 2 or 3 times a year but people don’t as often go to them. I don’t travel which is hard for me and makes me very sad, so FaceTiming means the world to me. The 3 kids take turns going to Chicago or Atlanta for this week of the year now so all the siblings and their families are together and this year they are in Atlanta. This afternoon I got to FaceTime with all of them, all 3 kids and their families, all 4 of my grandsons, it was just delightful. All hail the iPhone! FaceTiming is changing the way families can stay in touch.
But back to Siri, she is fun. And I like to tease her and carry on. Once I said to her, “I love you Siri,” to which she replied, “It wasn’t meant to be.” I laughed so hard I nearly dropped her on the floor. She tells me jokes but they aren’t very good and I can’t figure them out most of the time. For example for the sake of this post I just said, “Hey Siri, tell me a joke.” to which she replied, “What did the Buddhist monk say to the hot dog vendor?” Reply: “Make me one with everything.” OH HEY, WAIT A MINUTE, I GET IT NOW!!! Hey, that was a good one! Way to go Siri! Siri is not always reliable though she does a pretty good job most of the time. But a few days ago I asked her if it was going to rain. She’s pretty good with the weather. She said, “There is no rain in the forecast,” after which, within about 15 minutes, it was absolutely pouring, a torrential downpour. I think Siri hadn’t had her coffee. All in all the novelty with Siri wore off pretty quickly, it’s all about the FaceTime for me now.
The iPhone does take amazing photographs as people say but the thing is I’m not one of those artsy iPhone photographers. I do my share of posting things on Facebook or Instagram but they are just kind of “moments in my life” sort of things, the dogs, the garden, my family. But I have to say, and I’m more than a little embarrassed to say this, I absolutely love my iPhone, I have a feeling for it I never had with any Android phone I ever had, it’s sleek and beautiful — I adore the rose gold color — and the case I got when I bought the iPhone, one of those industrial strength, military grade cases where you can throw the phone against a concrete wall and nothing will happen to it, and it works! was also called “Rose Gold” and is clear for the most part so you can actually see how pretty the phone is but has rose gold flecks all in it. Oh, I mean it is gorgeous. I’m kind of swooning. I am silly over my phone.
So there you have it, now I’m one of those people I never thought I’d be, I’m an iPhone user, and there’s no going back. I couldn’t be without FaceTime, Siri has grown on me, and there are apps I use every day of my life that I love. I should be ashamed but I’m not. I love my iPhone. So there.
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Ahh Maitri, you almost have me wanting an iphone with this post. I’ve been considering it over the years. I have an ipad and love it. Also been Face Timing with my Granddaughter’s family who I have never seen and probably won’t. It’s fun to just see them and it has to be enough. I have a Galaxy Note 4 (kind of old) but I’m hanging on to it as long as I can because phones are expensive. As long as my phone works I will keep it.
I had to laugh about you and Siri. I like to play around with her for a while but not too long. Ask her to sing for you when you get a chance and don’t take no for an answer. LOL
I am so glad you love your iphone.
Much Love, Jean
Ah Jean, I used to have a Galaxy Note and I loved it. And yes, phones are expensive. I couldn’t have bought an iPhone flat out, I’m with T-Mobile (Have been since my first phone in 2000) and they let you make a small phone payment on your monthly bill. That’s how I’ve done it.
And Siri, well, I tried my best to get Siri to sing but she has told me in no uncertain terms 3x in a row that she CAN’T sing. I don’t know how you got her to but you must be magic! Ha! And yes I love my phone. I have scoffed for so long about people so into their technological devices and now here I am. It’s the modern age, whattawegonnado? 😀
Well Maitri, I’m glad to hear you have such a positive relationship with your iPhone! 🙂
I now have my first iPhone which is actually a second hand one passed along to me from my brother-in-law. A couple of months ago we cancelled our land line phone and have gone to only cell phone use. To be honest, I’m still in the learning phase with it and only use the most basic features. I know it is capable of a lot but I have not explored many options yet. I only just figured out how to use the camera and take a selfie this week. I have not tried Face Time with our little grandson yet but I think his other grandmother does that. His mom is just going back to work next week so he will be at daycare on weekdays and I expect their weekends will be quite full. We have done FB video calls or Skype with them sometimes but now that he is so mobile that does not work so well. I’m sure we will figure something out. In the meantime, we still try to have a visit with him monthly. His first birthday is coming up on the 16th and there will be a party for that.
Joan, yes, that’s the thing about these phones (computers, tablets, etc) they have the ability to do SO much more than I will ever know how to use, but that’s okay, I’m delighted to use what I have figured out how to use and I learn a little more here and there. And I haven’t had a land line in years. I do have a Vonage phone that I’ve had for a long time and only pay about $6 a month for. It goes through the computer line. It is a back up phone for me in case something happens to my cell phone and it helped me FIND my phone when I couldn’t find it a few times (I’ve called myself and found where it was ringing!) and it has come in handy when I had to call TMobile to do troubleshooting on my phone and they needed to talk to me on a different phone so I could do things to my iPhone, just little adjustments. But no, no land line here either.
And OH! You will LOVE FaceTiming with your grandbaby! That’s what this phone is all about for me and why I have it. And gracious, a year old! I remember when he was born. Lordy, they grow up so fast, that’s why FaceTiming is so precious to me, to stay in touch, to be a part of their growing up. It just means the world to me. Enjoy your iPhone! 🙂
We’ve always been Mac people, so when we finally got smart phones a couple of years back they were iPhones. Without kids, we don’t appreciate the FaceTime aspect, but love them for everything else. Our “good” SLR cameras have been gathering dust, since.
Yes Lisa iPhones are good for lots of things and I have a nice camera I never use either. The iPhone is so easy and with DropBox it just automatically sends everything to my computer. It really is amazing. I used to always have Macs, I learned how to use a computer with Macs and had one for a long time but a few years ago when I had to replace my computer I couldn’t afford a Mac, pcs are so much cheaper. That’s why I never got an iPhone, but you don’t need a Mac to enjoy an iPhone I’ve learned and I’m loving it! 🙂
Change is good! I have an Android but I don’t know what kind. I hardly EVER use it except when we travel. I take photographs that are bizarre–heads cut off, out of focus (they looked good to me)–and nonexistent ( I KNOW I pressed that button). I know eventualy I will have to give in and get and iPhone…I gave in and got a MAC and later an iPad!
Oh Marge, if you’ve got a Mac and an iPad (I don’t have either) you’ve GOT to have an iPhone! And I think you can sync them all up and have all your data across all your devices. That would be really nice for you. But, uh, I’m not sure even an iPhone will keep you from cutting the heads off, ha ha ha, they’re pretty magic but they can’t take the pictures for you! 😀
I was such a Luddite that I didn’t possess a cellphone until 2012. I got it to shut Jonathan up, as he had been begging me to get one since we had first met!
The original phone was an old school flip phone I named “DeeDee,” short for either Digital Darling or DumDum, depending on my mood. I inherited his smart phone next, when he upgraded, an LG I named “Soundwave,” in 2014. Two years after that he got me my current phone, a Samsung Galaxy 5 that I named “Princess Jun,” after the character in the “Gatchaman” anime, because her Otter case is pink and white.
My husband is all about the bells and whistles and shiny new tech; I’m good with whatever works and is in a Otter case. When he got a laptop, I got his tablet, which will be the home for all of my Social Media, as I return to it. He is threatening to convert everything to Apple when he gets his VA settlement & final upgrade. I just nod and make sure we have enough to pay the bills. I reel him in from time to time. 😉
Victoria, Luddite indeed! Ha! You tickled me to bits with your story!
You know, way back when in the 90’s, I had a small press, The Blue Hibiscus Press. I published a 100 page quarterly journal, all on blue paper, hand done and hand assembled. I had a black and white laptop, no internet. I typed all the columns and then cut and pasted them by hand onto the pages as one used to. I had hundreds of quotes in each issue which I cut and pasted, and old Victorian artwork. They were so pretty and people loved them. It was called “The Contemplative Way: Slowing Down In A Modern World.” I had many writers from around the United States that contributed. I wrote about writing/journalling, gardening, homeschooling, homebirth, natural living, and so on. And letter-writing. I was a dedicated letter writer and wrote very long letters to a number of women I corresponded with. And everyone around me were going to email, and they were all gradually stopping writing letters. I was horrified. I said I would NEVER give in to email, I would never stop writing letters. Sigh… In a few short years I too had email, stopped writing letters, and was so involved in the internet there was no going back. And now here I am with an iPhone. I’ve lost my Luddite status, though I think back to it wistfully. But FaceTiming with my children and grandchildren, well, there’s no going back for me, I don’t know what I’d do without it now.
Sounds like you have your hands full with your husband! Ha ha ha. Good luck with that! 😀
My iphone is rose gold too. woot woot!!!
too tired to write much more, but i had an old flip phone that i dropped and it broke into pieces, and i was about to go on a 2 week out of town trip, and finally i submitted to my husband and daughter and got an i-phone, and of course, i can’t live without it now
xo ka
Katya, don’t you love the rose gold? It’s so pretty!
I’m glad Tom and Alana got you to get an iPhone. We should FaceTime sometime. (Ha ha ha I know, fat chance of that!) It’s just that when you are so far away and can’t spend real time together it is amazing how close being able to be face to face makes you feel. It’s like going from 2 dimensions to 3 and really being with the person. I just love it.
I hope you are having a lovely time with your company. I’m sending you much much love…
M. xoxox