“Just Like New”

I hate breaking things.  I really do.  When I buy something I try to keep it in the best condition possible.  I take pride in having my possessions last longer than others would expect.  Many years had passed since I last damaged something I owned.  Well……

I have owned only three cell phones in my entire life.  The one pictured here is first one I had.  The second was a Blackberry I had in the early 2000s.  The third is my current phone, a Samsung S10 Plus purchased in December 2019.  In between those two devices I had the benefit of using a company issued cell phone. 

During the ten years I worked for my prior employer I used two different “smart phones”, the Samsung Nexxus and the Samsung S6.  In ten years time I did manage to crack the screen of the Nexxus.  Otherwise no other damage.  Ten years I say.  As I started to develop a more active social media presence I thought it wiser to have a personal cell phone rather than use my work issued one.

Problem solved.  New Samsung S10 looked good to me.  One problem: my retailer has only the S10 Plus in stock.  Higher cost.  Surprise solution: they give me the S10 Plus at the S10 price! Looks even better! Got more than I expected. 

I was so excited to have my own personal smart phone after such a long time.  The freedom I had to utilize the latest technology inspired me to take a few IT courses and also expand my social media activities.  The whole world was now completely accessible with no concerns for work mandated phone usage limitations.  I mean I really enjoyed my new phone and people noticed…..

So, imagine the horror, the shock, the outright disappointment I felt when one day, upon arriving home from work, I retrieve my phone from my pocket and discover a CRACKED CAMERA LENS COVER!  Nooooooooooo! Six months.  SIX MONTHS AND I BREAK MY BEAUTIFUL NEW S10 PLUS.  Man I wanted to cry…..really. 

Now I’m not a total luddite, but I didn’t know much about phone repair.  I checked YouTube and called a few retailers for advice.  The verdict: do it yourself to the rescue.  After a few days my son orders the required repair kit via Amazon.  I eagerly await as it arrives a painstakingly slow two days later…….Guess what? Wrong one.  My son orders again. Another “unbelievable” two more days wait time.  Good thing it wasn’t a real emergency!

The kit was cool, a tidy package consisting of a precision blade, long handled tweezers, four replacement covers and cleaning cloths (wet and dry).  All for ten bucks baby.  Now remember, I’ve owned only three phones and the thought of repairing any component on one was far outside my realm of possibility. I was done in an hour. 

Just like new. Pride restored. Even more so because I did the repair. Now I know there are many folks who text faster than me, who have more “friends” and “likes”, who’ve owned a heck of a lot more cell phones, but……how many of you fixed your phone and made it almost new again? Oh, that’s right. Unlike me, you probably (hopefully) never broke yours.