Balloons Drifting Across the Stratosphere

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I love my cell phone. It makes my children seem closer to me and makes me feel more connected to my friends and family. I have been a mobile phone user since 1992 and have rarely gone over my pre-paid allowance of minutes. Back then I only had 15 minutes a month to use, then the minutes were over 50 cents each, plus roaming charges if I were out of my "home area". I'm not one to chat on the phone for endless hours. I just like knowing that I have a phone nearby.

When I moved from Savannah to NC, it was a big deal to call home and talk to my mamma. She thought long distance telephone calls were an extravagance and was never really comfortable talking long distance. She only called when she had something special to say. She usually said it and then got off the line. She wrote lots of letters and I have kept most of them. Letters make great keepsakes and reminders of life a while ago, but telephones are so convenient and easy.

Today, I communicate with my children almost every day. Some days we e-mail or speak on the phone several times. And it's not always a call from me to interrupt their busy days. They call me regularly. And I love it. And with call phones, they can reach me almost any time because I usually have my phone with me.

I have found that I cannot use my cell phone in certain parts of South Carolina and in the Mountain areas of North Carolina and Georgia. In my family, we refer to these non-cell-phone-accessible areas as the bowels of South Carolina and the hilly mountains.

Some people might like this, but I'm not one of them. That is why I was excited to read in today's News & Record about a new technology that might someday help my phone work almost everywhere. A story from Bismarck, ND tells me that there is a plan by a company called Extend America to use balloons to fill gaps in cell service areas. How wonderful! I hope it works. The article says that it works in the lab and cost a lot less than building cell towers. According to the article, 3 balloons could cover the same area as 1100 towers.

Ain't Technology Wonderful ! ? ! ?