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Wednesday, January 14, 2009

Cell Phones and Water Don't Mix

It seems that certain people are just prone to a particular kind of accident. I have a friend that loses sunglasses. Constantly. Its like a compulsion. There must be a part of her brain that works in cahoots against her in regards to sunglasses. She will often purchase several pairs at once, just so that they'll last her a week. Combined. I've never seen anything like it. I have another friend who is persistently misplacing her keys. Its rather unbelievable. She's lost her keys in grocery stores, Walmart, church, her own apartment. Basically, unless they are attached to her body in some fashion, they are at a high risk of getting lost.

I happen to be prone to a certain kind of accident myself. Not one that I'm very fond of, and it can be rather expensive at times as well. I break phones like nobody's business. I've had cell phone service for about 8 years now, and I believe I've only made it to Verizon's "new every two" deal once. My first phone met its fateful end in a toilet (and yes, it was a public bathroom. And no, there had been no "business" done in that particular bowl when the fateful drop occurred. Thank God). My next phone was dropped in such excess that the screen finally gave out. A phone or two after that was pulled from a high height by my nephew while it was plugged in (I had stupidly put it on top of a armoir with the cord dangling down. That is rather irresistible to a 2 year old). The force of the fall broke the part of the phone that the charger snaps into. *Sigh*

My current phone recently had a very close brush with its eternal demise in a bathroom sink. Clearly, I should never take my phones anywhere near water. Its begging for disaster. I had gently placed the phone on the sink counter and turned on the water when... *plop*... "Are you freaking KIDDING me?!" I thought to myself. I had just had a fabulous weekend at a youth workers retreat, filled with good worship, good teaching, and some very, very good laughter. And here, while I was living on practically no sleep mind you, my weekend ends with my cell phone sliding its way into liquid.

After hurriedly drying it off, I removed the battery and let it air dry. I was convinced that it was dead after attempting to turn it on several times only to have it completely freak out and spaz on me. I conceded myself to the fact that it was, in fact, dead. Gone. Kaput. Peace out girl scout.

Thankfully, my family has a weird habit of keeping all of their old cell phones. Probably because it has become apparent that I will continuously destroy my phone, so I need to have some sort of backup. I was able to get a hold of my parent's old cell phone, which, by the way, I had used last time my phone broke. Luckily, all of my contacts were still saved in there.

And then, a funny thing happened on the way to the forum. Okay, so it wasn't the forum. It was really the trash can. I was about to toss my poor dead phone into the garbage when I decided, what the heck, I may as well try it one more time. It had been 2 days since the fateful plop. Perhapsly the inside mechanisms had dried out and unfried themselves! I push the power button... and what do you know! It turns on without a problem! No buttons pushing themselves on their own, no crazy fritzing on the screen. Nothing but pure, sheer workingness! Amazing! It was a sign from heaven that Jesus does love me after all, even though I keep insisting on having my phone in the bathroom with me.

So, I am able to use my phone for another 6 months, at which time I will be able to upgrade. I will be sure to start taking precautions, like maybe keeping my phone in a plastic bag, or gluing it to my hand or something. Lord knows I need to do something...

4 comments:

Greggy said...

Rumor has it that water really is not as bad for most electronics as people think it is. The main issue as far as I'm aware is that the water may cause a short that could potentially fry circuits or something like that. I'm certainly no electrician. However, I've heard numerous stories of electronics that have survived water. It's not all that uncommon, but it is still a blessing.

I once had a phone that I washed in the washing machine. I did not even realize it until I heard an awful thumping in my dryer. I took it apart, rinsed it (soap will ruin electronics more quickly than water), and allowed it to air dry overnight. I continued using that phone until my plan ran out and I got a new one for free. It still works, as far as I know.

Brooke Fontoura said...

I've dumped my phone in a glass of water once. Don't ask me how it happened, for I do not recall exactly. The only dreadful thing that happened to it is that it wouldn't ring when someone was calling me. People had to text me to say, "I'm going to call you!" so that I would know. Then, it was stolen. I don't know who would want a phone that doesn't ring, but someone at NCC sure did.

Another time, I was skipping on gravel and dropped my phone. The entire front screen shattered into a bajillion little pieces. Now, I try not to skip and text.

You are not alone, my friend! Though it makes for a funny story.

Straight from the Mouth of a Dinosaur said...

umm... dont glue it to your hand. you'll end up washing that hand. stick with a plastic bag or something ;)

Cody S. said...

Greggy is correct...the majority of the time (assuming said electronic device was submerged / wet for a very brief time...say, less than a minute) it should recover. just take it and power down immediately...disassemble as much as possible, and give it 2-4 days to air out, and it should be fine! This is also why you really CAN safely put a keyboard through a dishwasher should you spill milk or soda or something on it.

...WEIRD!