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No Grandpa, that's NOT the phone company!

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  • No Grandpa, that's NOT the phone company!

    My boyfriend's grandfather had some issues with scamming calls that had to be blocked, charges reversed, etc. He got a new phone with a new number. The front screen on the phone just shows the generic 'Verizon' logo with the phone number calling underneath. When you get a call, the screen lights-up.

    His grandfather was in a tizzy today because he said he's being 'harassed' by Verizon and by god he's not going to answer a single one of their calls no matter how many times they ring him and he's about ready to cancel his service! My boyfriend and his mother had to explain to grandpa that it wasn't THE PHONE COMPANY calling him, that was just the company logo flashing whenever anyone calls. They're not sure if he understood entirely or if he'll forget within the week, but the whole family was wondering why grandpa wasn't answering their calls! I hope he remembers this for sure and doesn't go calling their customer service and complaining!
    "If anyone wants this old box containing the broken bits of my former faith in humanity, I'll take your best offer now. You may be able to salvage a few of em' for parts..... " - Quote by Argabarga

  • #2
    Oh man I feel their pain sounds like something my grandfather would do. Any chance the display can be changed so it shows something else or nothing at all?
    We are dealing with my grandfather understanding the screen is caller ID, he doesn't need to call us to see if we called anytime he misses a call. The name and number of the person who called is right there. That and he refuses the acknowledge the fact that the cell phone can be turned off, "I might miss an important call!". We found out his stance on turning it off while at a wedding this weekend after we hear his cell phone go off, Mom asks if that is his and he goes "No one can hear it." annnnd everyone can hear him say that, along with his phone ringing. *head desk* (thank god the bride and groom laughed.)
    I'm the 5th horsemen of the apocalypse. Bringer of giggly bouncy doom, they don't talk about me much.

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    • #3
      My grandparents died by the 80's, so there wasn't quite as much new technology to deal with as today. But actually, new technology wasn't really an issue with my grandmother. She simply refused to allow it, period. She had always loved the radio, but refused to ever get a TV (my grandfather spent a lot of nights at his son's down the road, LOL). At one point, her children banded together and bought her a telephone (traditional wired in living room phone) for emergencies, which she refused to use. She said if she had an emergency, the nearest neighbor could hear her ring her cow bell like crazy, that was good enough for her. Oh, and she didn't like the idea of daylight savings time, either. Visiting in the summer was lots of fun, calculating regular time and "grandma" time.

      Madness takes it's toll....
      Please have exact change ready.

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      • #4
        My mother was like that, she was a real joy to grow up with. No color tv allowed. No microwave. She had a a phone but it had to be rotary dial, NO pushbuttons. Refused to use the atm she would write "cash" on a check and go to the bank in person.

        She refused a lot of modern stuff in the 70's and 80's as well.

        I love technology and embrace everything out there.
        https://www.youtube.com/user/HedgeTV
        Great YouTube channel check it out!

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        • #5
          Quoth Merriweather View Post
          Oh, and she didn't like the idea of daylight savings time, either. Visiting in the summer was lots of fun, calculating regular time and "grandma" time.
          I had an Uncle who refused to observe daylight savings time.
          "I don't have to be petty. The Universe does that for me."

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          • #6
            Quoth Ironclad Alibi View Post
            I had an Uncle who refused to observe daylight savings time.
            Thanks so much for telling me that, I swear, I thought I was the only one with a relative like that - I have never in my life run across anyone who even knew anyone who did that.

            Madness takes it's toll....
            Please have exact change ready.

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            • #7
              I wish I could ignore daylight savings time. I think work would get more than slightly angry with me, however.

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              • #8
                I can't fathom ignoring it, since in the fall....it becomes pretty apparent that the sun is playing a hiding act for several months.
                You really need to see a neurologist. - Wagegoth

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                • #9
                  My parents take the time to learn about new technology. They quit observing daylight savings. Then again, they moved to Arizona.
                  To right the countless wrongs of our days... We shine this light of true redemption, that this place may become as paradise...Oh, what a wonderful world such would be...

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                  • #10
                    I love daylight savings time and wish it would become the new standard time year round.
                    https://www.youtube.com/user/HedgeTV
                    Great YouTube channel check it out!

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                    • #11
                      ...and I thought *my* grandparents were bad

                      But remember, these were people who either lived on the farm and didn't have much to begin with...or remember the 1930s, the Depression, and WWII-era rationing. Plus, you have the "it was good enough for my parents" and "father knows best" attitudes as well.

                      That's why my maternal grandmother never had a washing machine until after my grandfather died (in '89, I might add!). She made do with a wringer, and a couple of metal washbins. She had a dryer, but no washer until then. At the time, my grandfather figured that such things worked OK for his mother, so why should things change? Also, you have to remember that my grandparents were raised on farms, and grew up during the 1930s--money wasn't exactly plentiful when they were younger. Even if one's family did own a feed store...

                      Dad's side of the family was a bit more willing to embrace technology. Provided, that it wasn't "too expensive." They had most of the modern appliances, but some of them were "jury rigged" to work. How? Well, the dishwasher wasn't next to the sink--it was next to the 'fridge, which was in the corner. To wash dishes, you had to slide the unit out from the wall, towards the sink. Then you had to load it, hook up the water connections...and then put everything back when it stopped. The reason for all this insanity? Money. Their home was built in the 1950s, and dishwashers simply didn't exist then. Rather than remodel the kitchen, the installation was judged "good enough." That went on for years--it wasn't until the mid-1990s when the kitchen was remodeled! But, while my grandfather was at least willing to read up on new stuff, my grandmother wasn't as willing. New technology causes her to freak the hell out.

                      Not long ago, she was having problems with her "answering machine." Apparently, it was all "filled up" with messages, and nobody could leave her new ones. So, being the good grandson I am, I took a look at it. I got out the various instructions, found that the machine was empty, told her...and she flipped. No matter how I tried, I couldn't persuade her that the machine was fine. She kept insisting that I was wrong...even after I played the "you have no messages."

                      Turns out that she didn't only have that stupid machine. She also had some sort of mailbox with the phone company...and didn't bother telling me about it. Got that sorted with a few calls to the phone company, and no, she didn't apologize for screaming at me
                      Aerodynamics are for people who can't build engines. --Enzo Ferrari

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                      • #12
                        Quoth protege View Post
                        Dad's side of the family was a bit more willing to embrace technology. Provided, that it wasn't "too expensive." They had most of the modern appliances, but some of them were "jury rigged" to work. How? Well, the dishwasher wasn't next to the sink--it was next to the 'fridge, which was in the corner. To wash dishes, you had to slide the unit out from the wall, towards the sink. Then you had to load it, hook up the water connections...and then put everything back when it stopped. The reason for all this insanity? Money. Their home was built in the 1950s, and dishwashers simply didn't exist then. Rather than remodel the kitchen, the installation was judged "good enough." That went on for years--it wasn't until the mid-1990s when the kitchen was remodeled!
                        My dad was quite the 'jury rigger'. The house had been built without accommodations for a washer/dryer. Installing the dryer wasn't a big deal; the house had gas heat and the only other things needed were a 120V outlet and a place for the vent.

                        The washing machine, however....

                        He plumbed in some water connections in the garage, and those worked well. Unfortunately, there was no place for the water-dump connection. So, he cobbled together some weird sort of adapter and ran a GARDEN HOSE up over the ceiling to the next room, which had a floor drain. The hose just laid on the floor and dumped into the floor drain. When you weren't washing clothes, you picked up the hose and hung it up on a hook. And yeah, there were a few instances were someone forgot to 'deploy' the hose before starting the machine.

                        This was a long time ago, when washing machines were made mostly of metal.
                        And I gotta hand it to him - the setup worked good for several years. But when that first washing machine finally died and had to be replaced, the replacement machine was a much newer, more 'modern' model, and its wimpy li'l pump couldn't handle pushing water up over that 'hump and self-destructed after only a few months.

                        Finally, they ripped out the sink in the downstairs bathroom and installed the washer there.

                        And my mom hated the electronic controls on that thing. She liked the older ones where you just twisted a dial. Gotta admit, it was simpler.

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                        • #13
                          Quoth protege View Post
                          ...Dad's side of the family was a bit more willing to embrace technology. Provided, that it wasn't "too expensive." They had most of the modern appliances, but some of them were "jury rigged" to work. How? Well, the dishwasher wasn't next to the sink--it was next to the 'fridge, which was in the corner. To wash dishes, you had to slide the unit out from the wall, towards the sink. Then you had to load it, hook up the water connections...and then put everything back when it stopped. The reason for all this insanity? Money. Their home was built in the 1950s, and dishwashers simply didn't exist then. Rather than remodel the kitchen, the installation was judged "good enough." That went on for years--it wasn't until the mid-1990s when the kitchen was remodeled! :
                          Sounds like a portable dishwasher. So what? That's not as good as having one built in, but it works and it saves, not hundreds, but thousands, possibly tens of thousands, of dollars. If you don't want to remodel the whole kitchen, you make do with it. The dishwasher is designed to move, and is designed to easily hook up to the faucet.

                          Yes, I used to have one.
                          Women can do anything men can.
                          But we don't because lots of it's disgusting.
                          Maxine

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                          • #14
                            Quoth telecom_goddess View Post
                            My mother was like that, she was a real joy to grow up with. No color tv allowed. No microwave. She had a a phone but it had to be rotary dial, NO pushbuttons. Refused to use the atm she would write "cash" on a check and go to the bank in person.

                            She refused a lot of modern stuff in the 70's and 80's as well.

                            I love technology and embrace everything out there.
                            That sounds like my grandmother and mother! My grandmother had an ancient, black, rotary dial phone in her one apt (circa. sometime in the 1960's and still rented from Ma Bell). When she moved, my mom tricked her and told her itwouldn't work in her new apt, and got her one with large push buttons (Grandma was legally blind) She accepted that without a whimper.

                            My mom, while up on technology, still has issues with her cell phone, she can use it to call in an emergency, and I THNK she can answer it, if its ever on, but that's it. She has a computer, and can email, go online, etc. But she still goes to the bank, and cashes a check in the drivethrough. Hey, if that makes her happy, so be it.

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                            • #15
                              Quoth Sparky View Post
                              Sounds like a portable dishwasher.
                              They had the same model my parents did. It wasn't 'portable' at all. It was designed to be installed under a counter. Grandpa made it 'portable' by putting the thing on wooden skids, and using an extra garden hose to supply it with water. Crude, but it worked. Too bad it was hard on his back and knees having to constantly shuffle the blasted thing around. What was weird, is that by 1980, that machine had finally had it, and was replaced. This time, the plumbing was done properly. A pipe was simply run up from the basement, and tapped into the main line. Why he didn't do that the first time, since all it really involved was an hour's labor, I'll never know.
                              Aerodynamics are for people who can't build engines. --Enzo Ferrari

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