I\u2019m ready to go to the police. To file a harassment complaint. I\u2019ve had it! This constant assault on my mental stability, my anxiety level, my well being. BY MY CELL PHONE! I\u2019m going through the day having a wonderful time doing old coot stuff, like checking around to see who has the best early bird special and my phone attacks me, \u201cYour battery is getting dangerously low, only 35 percent remaining; plug it in immediately!\u201d Or, some such paranoid outburst. \u201cPlug me in or I\u2019m going to shift to an energy saving state and you\u2019ll be sorry,\u201d it continues. The process reminds me of the Jimmy Carter era, when he bugged us to turn down the thermostats to save energy, wearing a cardigan to show that he was doing it. <\/p>\n
My phone is more insistent than Carter was. Besides, I view a 35 percent battery level as quite sufficient; I\u2019m getting around with a lower percentage of energy than that and I\u2019m doing just fine, now that I\u2019ve added an 11 a.m. nap to my recharging schedule. I\u2019m up at five or six in the morning – take my first nap at nine, another at four, and now my new nap, an hour before lunchtime. These naps only last for five minutes or so, but they allow me to function with a glass half full, so to speak. <\/p>\n
My phone doesn\u2019t agree. It has a \u201cglass half empty\u201d personality. I try to ignore its panicky pleading, but at every new low, it yells at me. It is harassment, pure and simple! It used to be worse. Every App on my phone was after me: You have a new email \u2013 I-Heart Radio has added new features – Facebook has notices for you. \u2013 The Weather Channel has an alert. I figured out how to turn off all those notices. But, I can\u2019t figure out how to turn off the battery level hysteria program. <\/p>\n
It wouldn\u2019t be this bad if the programmers that create software would ask old coots to provide input. Maybe, a focus group or two. We\u2019d tell them to change the battery warnings, from harassing to nurturing. Have the screen say, \u201cWow \u2013 You have 35 percent battery left; that\u2019s a lot! Enjoy!\u201d Or, \u201cWow – Your battery is running down. Soon you will be out of touch; won\u2019t that be nice!\u201d We\u2019re out here, but nobody asks.<\/p>\n