Of Phones and Money

Well, i must admit, its been a long time. But as they say, never late than never right? Well, my biggest hope is that people who were reading my blog, still have enough faith in me to keep checking. If they do, then i'm thankful. I'm pretty rusty having not written for such a long time. But hey, you can't have it all!

This time, i thought i would write about something that has cropped up in my life quite recently - the telephone. This inocuous devil has quite simply wreaked havoc in my life over the past one month. Why? Well, we'll see, i might just explain. But otherwise, here's my blog.

The word telephone or phone comes from the Greek words tele, meaning far away and phone, meaning voice.

In the 1870s, two inventors Elisha Gray and Alexander Graham Bell both independently designed devices that could transmit speech electrically. Both men rushed their respective designs to the patent office within hours of each other, Alexander Graham Bell patented his telephone first. Elisha Gray and Alexander Graham Bell entered into a famous legal battle over the invention of the telephone, which Bell won.

The telegraph and telephone are both wire-based electrical systems, and Alexander Graham Bell's success with the telephone came as a direct result of his attempts to improve the telegraph.

When Bell began experimenting with electrical signals, the telegraph had been an established means of communication for some 30 years. Although a highly successful system, the telegraph, with its dot-and-dash Morse code, was basically limited to receiving and sending one message at a time. Bell's extensive knowledge of the nature of sound and his understanding of music enabled him to conjecture the possibility of transmitting multiple messages over the same wire at the same time. Although the idea of a multiple telegraph had been in existence for some time, Bell offered his own musical or harmonic approach as a possible practical solution. His "harmonic telegraph" was based on the principle that several notes could be sent simultaneously along the same wire if the notes or signals differed in pitch.

By October 1874, Bell's research had progressed to the extent that he could inform his future father-in-law, Boston attorney Gardiner Greene Hubbard, about the possibility of a multiple telegraph. Hubbard, who resented the absolute control then exerted by the Western Union Telegraph Company, instantly saw the potential for breaking such a monopoly and gave Bell the financial backing he needed. Bell proceeded with his work on the multiple telegraph, but he did not tell Hubbard that he and Thomas Watson, a young electrician whose services he had enlisted, were also exploring an idea that had occurred to him that summer - that of developing a device that would transmit speech electrically.

Alexander Graham Bell's notebook entry of 10 March 1876 describes his successful experiment with the telephone. Speaking through the instrument to his assistant, Thomas A. Watson, in the next room, Bell utters these famous first words, "Mr. Watson -- come here -- I want to see you."

And the rest as they say is history.

My own experience with telephones(which is pretty extensive mind you!) ranges from the slightly mundane to the overly exciting. Some of my best moments in life have come through the telephone. Some of these include
1) finding out that my cousin was a baby boy and that i could now enjoy countless hours of teasing and ragging without ever worrying about how sensitive the little thing was.
2) telling my parents that i had qualified or won in this event or that and listening to the pride in their voices when they say, "Good son! but i'm not proud of you!"
3) talking to special people who mean a lot to me and sharing their lives, happiness, disappointments, successes and dreams in a way only the telephone can make possible.
4) many many more

There was a time when i used to think that telephones were a girl's best friend. Infact, i would acutally avoid talking on the phone for the simple reason that i would have to open my mouth and exercise the only muscle in my body connected at one end. Most of my conversations would last but a few minutes, with only major issues covered and settled, nothing more. In the last month however, events have occured which have made me realise what a beautiful invention it is. I have discovered that in times of distress, or happiness, nothing beats the telephone is sharing one's thoughts. This is because of the simple fact that one's voice is heard and a voice alteast for most of us, is a mirror for our emotions. Now, for whatever reasons, i seem to be hooked on the phone.

Relax guys, it's all not heaven. This is not a happy story or it wouldn't be my blog. There is still the minor issue that most telephone calls have to be paid for. Only it turned out to be not so minor for me. One evening, when i happily return from my bath, after a hard hour's work at the gym. I get a call. It's my friend. Consider the conversation below:
ME: Hey!
Friend: "5413!"
ME: Huh?
Friend: "5413!"
ME: Is that your telephone bill?
Friend: You bet it is you idiot!
ME: I mean, why, how, when, who?
Friend: YOU! YOU! YOU! YOU! YOU!
ME: Seriously? That's my contribution to the telephone department's reserves?
Friend: Listen you idiot, it's not the time for jokes. You know how serious this is?
ME: (After a momentary silence as if preparing for mourning) Yeah, i know. So what shall i do?
Friend: SHUT UP,sit there. You don't need to bother.
ME: i'm really sorry...
Friend: Shut up! BYE!
Friend puts phone down....
I'm sure this situation has been encountered in many a life. It's not isolated. A lot of us have in effect taken the phone for granted. As with every technology, once we find that it meets our purpose, we embrace it. After all, the telephone does help us to keep in contact with all those dear to us.

Having said all this, i would like to say that in the last one month, i have realised the power of voice. I have realised that there is nothing more wonderful than to get a call from someone you know and listen to their voice on the other side, their mannerisms, their jokes, their poking fun at you, their laughter, their tears, however bad the phone bill might turn out to be in the end (i'm sure my friend will be cringing, shouting, "EASY FOR YOU TO SAY!!! YOU DID'T PAY THE BILL!"). I'm sure, everyone should agree with this. That is beyond any money, though cash does play a serious limiting factor. Having said all this, it is necessary that like everything else, the phone is used in moderation. After all, too much of a tonic becomes a poison.

Please note, this is not an open invitation to all to share their telephone bills with me. i just thought i might bring out a teeny weeny bit of what i was doing all these months without writing a blog. i think i'll stop here.
Regards!

>>Berhael