Wednesday, November 25, 2009

women, showers, cell phones...

Paralysed. That's the feeling. Crippled. Helpless. Marooned. Adrift. Bet you know what I'm talking about? Yup - my phone crashed. And along with it, so did half my world. As with a few key events in my life, this disaster took place mid-shower. Why is it that the most important calls in ones life always interrupt a much needed shower? The phone may not ring for hours. The day is going great - lots of writing out of the way. You step into the shower to catch up with your thoughts... cool off a bit. The silent cell phone is carefully placed on a bone dry counter. The reasons it is always near you during showers are practical. What if there is an emergency and you need to reach help???? Good point, right? Oh well.... two days ago, the bloody instrument rang mid-shower. Normally I let it ring. This time was not normal. I decided to answer it. But only after drying my wet hand on a fluffy towel first. Guess what? My hand was obviously not dry enough. Something dreadful must have happened with the few drops that cleverly managed to seep in and short circuit the delicate machine. The phone started to behave like it was Agassi on crystal meth.It went nuts. Rang randomely, switched on and off at will, before spluttering and dying on me. This was insane. I shook it angrily, brought out my hair dryer and almost stuck the phone into the micro. It looked perfectly dry to me. But it had packed up ... and with it, so had most of my life.
My son Aditya told me to stop mourning and bury the phone. He swiftly arranged for a replacement. But my numbers!!! Fortunately, I had them saved on a cd. Smart! My new phone has gone for a fitting - like a model before a haute couture show. I'm set. Sort of. This is my second phone to have suffered a 'Death by Shower'. Somehow, this doesn't seem to happen to guys. What is it about women, showers and phones....?? I breathlessly await personal accounts of this kind from blogdosts. Tell me it can get worse.... and I'll feel better.
******************************
Arnab's show tonight between 9pm-10pm. Rajdeep's tomorrow between 7pm-8pm. Then back to Arnab again between 9pm-10pm. Then on to a traditional Thanksgiving and remembrance dinner with the American Consul General. It hasn't been easy for anyone...I am with the Israelis when they remind the world about the atrocities Jews have endured with the words, " Lest we forget..." India must not forget...

46 comments:

Romulus said...

beats dropping it into a cup of coffee, because people look upon you with disdain for pulling something like that off :( haha.

Ugich Konitari said...

There was a life before cell phones. Our parents had that life, and they didnt do too badly bringing up their children.

I think taking cell phones into showers is madness. Take a quicker shower instead.

aNuP__ said...

In my case, the phone rings when half the class is sleepy. and professor on a really interesting topic in theory in his polish accent.
Rest of the time it acts as a substitute to my dear lost watch.

best example of the murphy's law..!

Roshan said...

Do you really need to take your phone into the shower? Heard of Voicemail?

Lolopookie said...

I dropped mine in a waterfall once. Is that consolation enough?! :D :D

Unknown said...

hahahahahahahahaahahahaha.

Unknown said...

my husband dropped his i phone in a glass of water.so dont worry.things like that happens:)

Ranjit said...

haha!! nice one!! Reminds me of the incident where I adventuroulsy proposed my girlfriend over phone in heavy rains.The phone stopped working in the midst and I lost both the phone and the girlfriend............

Vishal Pore said...

Ah, you should have let it dry before trying any of those gimmicks.It really helps. Once I let my laptop dry and it worked :) Next time remember this...oops...don't take a phone to the shower :). Prevention better than cure and all that...

Vishal Pore
http://southindianpuranpoli.blogspot.com/

Vaudeville of Exhilaration said...

My cell phone once dropped in a bucket of water. Guess what? I am still using it. You know guys are cool. So if it had been a guy, he wouldn't have taken a cell phone into the shower and if he had taken by any chance, he wud hv cancelled the call..

चंद्रमौलेश्वर प्रसाद said...

This is my second phone to have suffered a 'Death by Shower'.

MORAL OF THE STORY: DONT TAKE CELLPHONE TO THE BATHROOM:)

NIM said...

yup that's true...all important call or atleast call that we don't want to ignore(irrespective of being important) occur when i'm in the shower... but luckily i have not witnessed a 'death by shower' incident. :P

Neha said...

Sorry about the loss, but it sure made me smile (to say 'laugh' might sound offending!). That reminded me of a friend who flushed his cell phone while talking to his girlfriend!! Well, guess it was time for you to take a new one...so take it that way :). Am sure you are liking your new handset :)

Unknown said...

http://everythingaboutmumbai.blogspot.com/2009/11/what-we-can-do-to-avoid-2611.html

Shatrughan Singh said...

Teachings of Bhagwat Gita were given by Lord Krishna more than 5000 years ago but are still relevant today in our lives. Here is one for you:

What did you bring at the time of birth, that you have lost? What did you produce, which is destroyed? You didn't bring anything when you were born. Whatever you have, you have received it from the God only while on this earth. Whatever you will give, you will give it to the God. Everyone came in this world empty handed and shall go the same way. Everything belongs to God only.

My friends start beating me when I speak like this. Hope your feeling is not same here.

Jyostna said...

Better take it to the shower than having an aquarium n a kid. My cousin lost 3 phones for the same reason, so she got rid of the aquarium since she cannot stop her kid ;)
I do have this habit of taking cellphone to shower but never had such experience. :)

Sameer said...

Sorry to hear about your phone "loss". I can imagine how your world must have gone paralyzed. I usually carry my phones as well in the bathroom when I go for shower but this has not happened yet. But may be now I will be careful.

I agree with some other blogdosts who mentioned about how our world has changed. With cell phones, i phones, twittermania we operate in this information crazy world where we forget to take time to savor the simplicities of life. May be we should start doing that - enjoy our showers without any interruption, watch a movie in theater without your cell phone on..and the list can go on. We should have at least one day a month like this where we operate without any mode of communication- cell phones, computers, emails. Nothing. I agree, our parent's generation survived, why can't we?

TheBanyanTree said...

hahaha...that was funny...but awww ur cell died...:(
once my dad forgot his cell in his trousers n it gt washed up in washing machine ...hehehe...it too crashed...
but no worries...next time...wear gloves n answer d call...lol... :)


tak care..

Mansee's Point Of View! said...

Taking your phone with you for a shower?? Frankly speaking I'm dissaponted. You don't come across as somebody like that..."Bathroom" is the best ME time which anybody can get- why do you want to spoil it by having something as bothersome as a phone around?? There is always voice mail or the option to call back

Jogeshwar said...

Well I once happened to drop mine in a stack of hay. I searched for it quite a while but then gave up. I found it months later when the hay finished. The cellphone was barely recognizable but luckily I could use the sim again :)

Anonymous said...

Tonight/Tomorrow/And again
- Big Boss 3
9pm-10pm

ekta khetan said...

Hey Ms de I saw you on Arnab' show and even tweeted about it.

You were absolutely fantastic with "on your face" remarks and stand! Bravo!

Being in telecom I know how bad u feel when ur h/s goes missing...Hee heee good that u ve backup for your nos...nokia PC suite?

Manjiri said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Manjiri said...

hi

The best way to dry the phone is to keep it on top of your TV set. In two days, it returns to normalcy. I have tried it. I am telling you it works

Harish said...

aiyyo! id toh die if my fone takes a shower. I have deprived my phone from a bath since long... and i will rather have her stinking than watch her sinking.

********************************

Lest we Forget. you know de... the internal dialogue has started. though the results of teh anger is not always measurable and tangible, the conversation with ones innerself has begun.

I see mumbai more vociferous, about issues. Even if they sport a resigned and cynical attitude they do so with a lot of vengeance and hidden anger.

I am doing an activity tomorrow to remind people...A street extempore outside our college - st. xaviers.

Details here:
http://bit.ly/WhereWereU

******************************

our ministers suffer from Gajani type amnesia and wish to acquire paa type Progeria. This hybrid is most fatal... they forget too soon, and wish to run faster and get wealthier too soon...

Chanz said...

hahaha... poor you... Women and cell phones... Welcome to our group.. You took the phone in a shower. Hahaha... I have heard a hundred stories abt this. So u must thank god, that you are not the only one who is crazy enough to take the phone to a shower... Its actually, the caller's fault.. Dont call yourself names coz u didnt do anything.. Be happy and enjoy the new phone..


(Sigh) Women know how to take money out of their husbands and dads... :)

Another Kiran In NYC said...

Atleast you didnt get your phone caught in the velcro back of your active toddler's diaper to be pee-ed on for half a day while you wondered where the hell it went.

I was in a hurry to get him to the sandpile at the playground and paid no attention when he kept tugging on his pants.

And it didnt even ring! Imagine if his bottom had begun to ring at the playground!

No amount of drying was going to help that phone!

drukmo said...

The hair dryer trick to dry the phone reminds me of that scene in the movie "Funny Games" when Naomi Watts is desperately trying to ring 911 with her wet phone. It is a disturbing film directed by the much acclaimed German guy who this year got a lot of critical acclaim for White Ribbon. If you haven't seen the movie, please try to watch it and if you have, you know that your situation is like a thousand times better than the one in the movie. The silver lining in this case extends into the realm of "violent" movies that are able to make you sweat without showing the act itself. You'll watch a good movie, connect to the actor's frustration against her dead phone and thank god you aren't in the same situation. It's all win win!
My two cents worth...a tibetan fan of yours.

Scarlett said...

Someone I know dropped hers into the toilet. Indian style...LOL. So there was no way she could've fetched it out either!!

Nandinikakoti said...

seen Arnab's show.. my deductions ain't humble here.. however u did look Awesome............as always xx

Nandinikakoti said...

Never mind with yo half world lost... people will get bck to ye.... u know why... Cheers!

Tara said...

ooh a nice hit ! made me remember the day when v both (cellphone and me)were drenched in heavy rain all lost in a quiet street. Just as i tried my friend for help it died.. aaahh but made back to home though.. defenitely u will save the phone u hold now !!!

introspection said...

My nephew entered the sea with his iphone and blackberry in the pockets of his shorts at Hawaii beaches.
Apple replaced his iphone, but office did not replace the balckberry.

There, this should make you feel much much better!

sharmila said...

My son sat on my cell phone and the screen display actually looked like an imprint of his bum.We had a hearty laugh over this death though!!!

Pooja Rathore said...

About your cell phone such things happen and it is normal to react that way though nothing like that has happened with me my suggestion take shower in peace leave the cellphone alone let the cell phone have a break too because if you take it along you will be tempted to use and may repeat the same mistake again.
I liked Arnab show on Times with regard to 26/11 how safe ? the answer is the same we dont feel safe no major security measures if there are we cant see or most important dont feel (as far as mumbai is concerned i have to take your word and you said you dont feel safe that means nothing major in terms of security arrangement is concerned , i live in Bangalore here too i cant see anything major in terms of security when prevention of terrorism is the main issue.
The Kingfisher calendar girl 2010 reality show on NDTV GoodTimes is fun its spicy and entertaining i watch the show for you and my favourite magnetic scorpion Milind Soman ( he still looks so good).Its fun watching the girls give their best to win the title.

Anonymous said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Latha said...

I'm surprised that 'Apple' replaced somebody's iphone. My son wasn't so lucky. His iphone was pick pocketed in Virginia & the police & the Apple company acted typically like Indians. When it is a wrong done to a foreigner by a local guy, they look the other way. That iphone was a birthday gift by his friends. So it's not even the money. It's the feeling behind it.
Only we Indians fight for the justice that should be done to the foreigners who visit.
For westerners it is no issue at all!!!!!

Illkilya said...

I lost my phone when it got jealous of me having a blast in Goa & decided to take a dip in the Arabian Sea!

Theyoginme said...

At least you had a back up...hope you back up your laptop and PC regularly.. those Hard-drives don't last forever and they don't need a wet hand to kill them..they simply die unexpectedly.

Perhaps you should consider not taking it in the shower - you should have some time for yourself without being interrupted. This whole idea of emergency phone calls adds more to our already stressful lives. Even in case of an emergency what could you have really done from the shower? Most likely the callers would have tried your land line instead. I think you should switch it off, disconnect...

We all lived without these gadget (pests!) and had perfectly normal lives in the past and dealt with emergencies just fine. this is why I hate cell phones! :)

Theyoginme said...

PS.

I was a bit shocked to read you carry your cell into the shower. The only thing I take is a magazine or a newspaper but not during a shower...

Not to sound sexist but perhaps women have more of an emotional attachment to their cell phones, so they want to carry it everywhere including the shower.

I think most guys want the latest and greatest! If they can afford to, they will dump their old cell phones for the new thinner and more sexier model with the latest whiz bang features. I have observed that guys in India carry several as if one is not enough... hmm.. what does that say about us men! Uh-oh, I hope I didn't offend anyone, but I am going to put my flame resistant overalls just in case!!!

Unknown said...

ur cell cant die just by a touch of wet hands.I think u r using chinese cell phones..............

kamal310i said...

My phone is too much for me.I do blogging and all the internet stuff on it.Believe me,it fell into the toilet english type.Poor me had to put hands and fetch it.Silly me to have washed it thoroughly under a tap with soap.The phone slept for a couple of hours.Then I kept it in the sun for a few minutes.It became ok.I am posting the comment through the same phone.

Jennifer Tavares said...

i watched you on arnabs show last nite and i felt you were too critical of everything. maybe thats ur job and thats why arnab calls u there. however i noticed that noone appreciated that we have lived for one year without a major terror attack and hats of to Mr PC on that.why do people light candles mrs de??? in rememberance thats why...so dont poke fun when people do it. you too will feel like doing it when you lose a loved one( god forbid) lastly i remember you in the early nineties coming to breach candy hospital with your son who fractured his hand or leg. you came inside the OT when we kept telling you to go out. you behave like a VIP, demanded things and wud not budge. i did not know who u were but somebody said she is a big shot. you still are and therefore you chose the tv studio over a candle march. you belong to the chatter class where bachi karkaria rightly put u.

Mukesh Bhatia said...

Men, Phone & Toilet is one of the combo. It happened with many whom I know personally & once with me too. Keep guessing how does it happen.

shivansh's blog said...

Haha....ur drenched cell phone is bRINGING smiles on my face...I too put some wet fingers on my cell few months back while washing clothes....(yes,boys can also wash clothes..dat too..not by washing machine)...Phone was switched off for whole night and it auto-dried next day..thanks to hot delhi weather...But anywz..try touch phones..no keys in them..no chances to get wet..;)

Anonymous said...

hahaha...that was funny. Merry Christmas to you!
George
smart phone