Maybe all this comes about because I got my new phone. After two years of waiting, one toilet phone, one phone that only operated on speaker, I finally got it- the blackberry. Signed under my name, it was mine, and all I had to do was take it home, charge it, and dial *228 to activate. Eagerly I plugged it in, allowed it to charge while I went out to dinner, and then raced home. *228, I dialed, and listened as it rang once, twice….beep, beep, beep- “Activation was unsuccessful!” In cheery blackberry font, it reminded me of my inability to connect to a bigger network. I dialed again. “Activation was unsuccessful!” The exclamation point was a dagger. You, Verizon reminded me, have failed in some particular way, to connect with us, this network to which EVERYONE can connect. What is your problem? Can you hear me now? No.
I called the 800 # and discovered that I was in something rather philisophical sounding called Verizon’s footprint. They could see me, but I was out of their reach. I could see them, but I could not connect. I knew what I wanted, but I couldn’t get it. LET ME DOWNLOAD RINGTONES DIRECTLY ONTO MY PHONE. WHAT DO I PAY THIS DATA PLAN FOR?!?! I wanted to use my browser to google useless facts on my phone, damnit. Frustration abounded, though in a calm collected manner, as a man named Devin and I discussed nearby populace epicenters towards which I could migrate. I detected confusion, then sarcasm, then pity in his voice as I described my location.
“How far are you from Little Rock?”
“About two hours.”
“How far from Jackson?”
“About two and a half.”
“Memphis?”
“Three.”
“Oh…mmmk.”
Devin and I both eventually gave up and parted ways.
I thought about my phone today during school. My children were not bad, nor where they overwhelmingly wonderful. They were fifth graders- frustratingly talkative, at times focused, at times overwhelmed, at all times ten years old. We lost the multiplication contest by 1% point to another class after weekly quizzes. One % point. Our test averages have been declining as the difficulty of the material (and its newness to my students) increases. Oh and, What’s that, Ronesha? You want time to talk? Well we’re in school. We’re here to learn, not to relax and chat. I know it’s just the time of year, but I also know this is a failure on my part in investment- my kids aren’t connected to a bigger picture.
We know what we want, but we can’t get to it yet. Right now. I don’t know what the proper descriptor is. We’re in a footprint.
