You haven’t really lived until you’ve dropped your cell phone in to the toilet.  It’s quite the rush, believe me.  Considering that my cell phone was immersed for less than .02 seconds, it’s hard to imagine how fast the device short-circuited. 

I’ve drop-kicked my phone multiple times.  I’ve had my phone gnawed on by a teething dog.  And I’ve accidentally left it in the freezer once.  (Don’t ask.)  My phone came out none the worse for wear.  But one teensy slip in to the drink and my phone is kaput.  Well, I shouldn’t really say kaput.  The phone part has been rendered completely useless, but oddly the camera portion still works.  Instead of being a camera-phone, it’s merely a camera … that occasionally rings. 

So off I traipsed to the Sprint store to get a new phone.  I have been a customer of Sprint since 1996.  My first phone was the size of a small brick and weighed about that much.  It had virtually no signal and I was forever paying thousands of dollars each month in overage charges.  (Apparently, I didn’t read the “international rates apply” fine print.)  I’ve always felt like Sprint’s customer service teetered somewhere between crappy-heinous and God-awful.  No other company gets me more riled up and no other company has felt my wrath more than Sprint. 

Yesterday, for instance, I wanted a new phone.  Simple enough.  And I wanted a new plan to go along with my new mobile device.  Again, sounds simple in theory.  The process took a village.  It ended with me making a call to Sprint’s Customer Service Department while I was IN the Sprint store – just to get my way. 

The representative – who clearly was driven by commission – wasn’t exactly thrilled when I suggested calling customer service.  He informed me I’d have to do that from my phone.  I held my phone up and took a picture of him – to gently remind him of my phone’s only capability.  (I really just wanted to hurl the broken phone at him – but cooler heads prevailed.)

In the end, I got everything I want – including a sassy new blue Rumor phone.  So feel free to call or text or send pictures to me with wild abandon.  I’m locked in with Sprint for two more years … and am already dreading going back in January 2011.  But, in the meantime, I’m back up to being fully functional and mobile.