Can You Hear Me Now?
A month ago I got a new smart phone. I’m not going to go into all the angst and stress it caused me as I pondered how to move my data, set up preferences and acclimate myself to a new phone. Of course I kept the old operating system (Android), brand (Samsung) and provider (Verizon) and bought it from Straight Talk through which we buy Verizon.
Using an app called Smart Switch to clone my apps, contacts, notes, etc. to the new phone turned out to be pretty easy. I was proud of myself for doing it competently!
Of course it takes a while to get used to new things and by and by I did. Then, one day, out of the blue, something changed that I had no influence over. I use Swype on the keyboard to text and send email, etc. All of a sudden, my Swype developed a thick blue tracing line between the letters. I didn’t initiate it, didn’t want it and didn’t know how to turn it off.
My husband (my go-to tech guy) who built our house, fixes all electronics, wires lamps, de-bugs computers and so much more, is not much help here as he never bothered to learn the intricacies of the smart phone. In fact, he still uses a flip phone with a pull-up antenna! So, I Googled the problem. Tried various solutions. Spent much time looking at different settings. Many of the setting categories on YouTube help videos were simply not on my phone. I asked my tech-savvy son, Lewis, who has helped me in the past. This time, he was as stymied as I was.
So, I phoned Straight Talk. After several minutes of automated responses I was finally connected to someone in the Tech Help department. Her name was Karen (it took me 3 tries to get that) and she was sweet and patient. However, I wish I had subtitles on my phone, as her accent (which she took pains to hide) was interfering with my comprehension of her advice. She assured me that if we were to disconnect, she had my callback number and would do so. 
Karen had me check certain settings (been there, done that) and “reset” my Samsung keyboard. So far, no help. Then she did research in the manual (BTDT again) to no avail. She tried a bit more. Every time there was a lull, I said, “Karen, are you still there?” and she gaily responded, “I’m here, Miss Arlene!”
45 minutes later, we got disconnected. No problem, I thought, she has my callback number.
I’m still waiting for the call from Karen, have given up on eliminating the heavy blue Swype line, and hesitate before I call Tech again to help me with my next problem: how come I can’t get a sound along with the notification icon when I get email?
Anyone out there who has a suggestion … I’m open to it. But remember, I’m a smart lady, I’ve already looked through all the settings, Googled the problem and asked for help. Can you hear me now?
(A)Musings by Arlene 