When I saw my sister. Kathy, last summer, her going-into-ninth-grade daughter had just gotten her own cell phone. My sister is not one for whom every latest gadget is a necessity. She is very back to basic. And a good money manager who would not waste her money on novelties.
At the time, I somewhat self-righteously, derided the idea of kids having cell phones. She chided me that once I have kids in various school related activities I may come to sing a different tune.
Woe is me. I have to put the old metaphorical tail between my legs and grovel before Kathy's infinite big-sisterly wisdom. I hope she's gentle with me.
I sent my kids to school today with our cell phone. I am sooooo sick of wasting time sitting out in front of the Oklee school waiting for the track bus to return from practice in Red Lake Falls. It often must wait for the baseball team and may or may not have to pick up the golf team and then has to drop half the kids off in Plummer before arriving in Oklee somewhere around the middle of the night. OK, I am exaggerating just a tad. Joe's told me a million times not to do that.
But yes, I decided to give in to modern conveniences and send the dumb thing with them.
BUT, much to Louisa's chagrin, the phone came ridden with the traditional Mary and Joe rules. No texting. No calling anyone but mom and dad. No giving out the phone number. No incoming calls from friends. This is only to call home to work out transportation. It is a tool not a toy. Any use other than the prescribed one better be a true emergency. And so on.
So Kathy, you were right. I only wish I would have given in sooner.
On the bright side of things, I did get a whole lot of reading done. Had I known earlier the number of minutes I'd spend sitting, waiting in the car, I would have started crocheting an afghan or something. I could have made probably a hundred by now.
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