If I said to you "My phone does not work reliably inside the house so please contact me via email and I will get back to you" Would you...

[D0oinMeCleanin]

a) contact me via email or FB
b) Repeatdly phone me
or
c) do b and then a and then berate me for not answering my phone?

Most people manage to do A or phone or if they don't have email they phone or text someone who does. One person in particular can only manage to do C

And yes, I need a new phone. I am looking into upgrading mine soon, but really if it is an emergency people have my address.

I work during the day. My gran is the main emergency contact for the school. She has my work number and has to drive past my house to get to and from the school.

I know they're not expensive Bunbaker, it's me who has bought the last three, the same three he was incapable of putting back on the charger and thus have been lost, broken or eaten. He can buy the next one if it bothers him so much.

He could also upgade the mobile contracts early for a small fee, we're very close to the end of the contract now, so you're only talking £20 or so.

Me? I'm not bothered enough by my lack of phone to do anything about and it causes no issues for anyone else who are all happy to wait for me to be out of the house and thus recieve their text/voicemail or will get me via email/FB if they need a quicker response.

If you're not bothered and your dh isn't bothered (if he was then he'd get a hew landline phone) then that's up to you but I know in your position I'd want to get it sorted in case anything happened to a family member while I was at home.

How's this for an idea, get a phone that's not cordless?

He could if he wanted to Hebie. I care not what kind of phone we have. It is, imo, intrusive and ridiculous to expect someone to be contactable 24/7 via telephone.

What on earth did people do before mobiles became widespread? Really my situation is just the opposite to that. My mobile works fine when I am not in a house.

The only family emergencies people ever contact me with is my uber organised and worrier mum and her "I am going away for the weekend in 3 years, 7 months, 2 weeks, 3 days and 21 hours time, and I need to remind you that you agreed to petsit for us"

If that is the only kind of emergency you've had then I am sure you count your lucky stars, may you always have that luck.

"What on earth did people do before mobiles became widespread?"

People had landlines (that were dogproof). Why is it up to your OH to decide whether you get a new phone? Don't you get any say in the matter?

Huh? I bought the last three phones. He lost them if he wishes to replace them, he can. I don't want or need a say in the matter. I'm not bothered if we have a landline phone or not. I'm definately not bothered by what kind it is or isn't.

Being constantly at the end of a phone to suit someone else is not important to me. My mobile works as much as I need it to. People are able to get hold of me, if they need to, just not always immediately. Which I should imagine is the same for most people who work?

Oh I see, you mean the mobile phones

Yes I get a say in the matter. I am coveting the new Galaxy Note. I shall love it like I love my HTC and shall keep it regardless of whether it works inside the house, just like with the HTC.

Once we are eligible for free upgrade I can log in online and order it. I can't do early upgrade because the contract is in DH's name, since he used to get staff discount from the phone company we were with. You can't apply for early upgrade online. They won't let me do it over the phone since it's not in my name. DH does want to have to pay to upgade the contract early, ergo, he cannot be that concerned about being able to reach me instantly.

"Which I should imagine is the same for most people who work?"

I have a desk job and keep my mobile on silent on my desk when I am at work. I was jolly pleased the school could contact me straight away when DD suffered a head injury in PE.

Even if the school could contact me straight away at work (which they can, they have my work number, dd1 also knows it, plus my mobile works at work) I can't leave the shop unless my boss is in, which is rare because I am not authorised to lock up, nor do I have the keys to be able to. So I'd rather not know that my child is injured and be stuck not being able to help. I'm not going to walk out of employment for a child with tummy ache. If I'm out they can reach me but are often advised to ring gran because she drives and can there quicker than me if I am out.

I trust my Gran to deal with things competently and she is happy to be responsible for being the main emergency contact for the school and is aware that this might involve taking either child to A and E. Anything life threatening/serious and I'd walk out of my job, obviously. My Gran has been the emergency contact long before I had issues with my phone and will be long after they solved because she does not work and she drives, making her the more sensible choice, I ring her to take us to hospitals ayway if there are accidents.

I honestly do not get the big fuss about not being at the end of a phone 24/7. What on earth do you people do if you go camping in a valley/signal black out area?

I like time for myself and quiet time and not being at the beck and call of others constantly. 9 times out 10 when people do ring me it is to ask me to do something for them, as in yesterday.

DH left it too late to buy his mum a birthday present and then panicked knowing he only had an hour to get hold of me and get me to go before I had to go to work. He managed it, eventually via FB. No big deal. If he'd tried that in the first instance, as I constantly remind him to he'd have gotten hold of me quicker and there'd have been no panic.

I can't for life of me understand why people feel they need to be permantly reachable, bar terminally ill or disabled relatives, of which I have none, thankfully.

Ask your DH what the problem is, since he's the one who keeps "forgetting" that there is one :-D

(I can't believe that people, even after reading that you're married, still said "what about school emergencies!?" as if your DH couldn't be the main contact...)

"I honestly do not get the big fuss about not being at the end of a phone 24/7."

I tend to agree with you. I like being uncontactable when I have my nearest and dearest around me. I also enjoy my me time and not being at others beck and call. We never contact anyone when we go on holiday except a minimal text to SIL to let her know the plane has landed (because MIL panics at the idea of us flying). The only time I feel the need to be contactable is when OH is away, I am at work and DD is at school. Unlike you I don't have anyone else to look after DD should the need arise.

DH not only has phone that works he also has a job he could just walk out of for an hour

He doesn't drive though, hence Gran being the no.1 choice. We did ask her first and she was happy to be wanted/needed.

It does really, Lady, we don't argue much anymore bar over my phone and my lack of ability to be at the other end of a telephone line constantly. He's even given up having a go over what the children are wearing. Oh, btw, if anyone happens to live on my street, dd2 dressed herself this morning, and has brushed her hair. It just looks that way naturally, hence why she normally wears a ponytail

Funnily enough when it comes to really important things like setting the TV to record the Newcastle match that starts in 5 minutes he is able to remember to use FB