Creative Aging: On Pride and Technology

“Once a new technology rolls over you, if you're not part of the steamroller, you're part of the road.” — Stewart Brand, Writer

Photo by freestocks on Unsplash

SUNDAY 10 a.m. As our pastor introduces his message, he asks each of us to recall a repeated sin. “Pride,” I think. “Yes, pride.” On the way home from church, I tell my husband Marlo which repeated sin came to mind.

WEDNESDAY 1 p.m. My husband and I decide to save money by switching cell phone carriers. The Consumer Cellular sales person tells us he will send us new SIM cards. We will need to open the SIM card tray and make a switch. It’s a simple process, he says. The tray is a rectangular cutaway on the narrow edge of the phone. It can be opened by inserting a needle or paper clip into the small hole adjacent to it.

After the phone call I examine all the narrow edges of my Moto G7. I find neither a SIM tray rectangle nor a small hole. I put it under brighter light. No tray. I try a magnifying glass. No tray.

“Do you have a plastic case around it?” asks my husband Marlo. He has one surrounding his phone.

“No,” I say, “I just have a leather case glued to the backside. It opens and does not cover the narrow edges.”

We Google “Open SIM tray on Moto G7” and watch a YouTube video that shows the location of the SIM tray and demonstrates how to open it.

I see no SIM tray in that location.

We watch several more YouTube videos. Same story.

WEDNESDAY 2 p.m. I call Motorola tech support. The customer service rep tells me the tray is either on the left side or the top right side. I tell her there is no SIM tray visible in either location. She tells me it has to be there. She asks if I have a plastic cover. I tell her no. She says maybe I have poor eyesight and can’t see the tray and hole. The conversation becomes heated. She tells me she can’t help me via phone. I will need to take it to some sort of Best Buy store and get in-person help.

The nearest Best Buy is an hour away in Des Moines.

WEDNESDAY 3 p.m. I call Consumer Cellular tech support. We walk through the same scenario. No, my phone doesn’t have a plastic case. No, there is no tray visible on any narrow edge of the phone. After several rounds, she tells me I need to go to a Target Consumer Cellular outlet near me, but make sure a phone technician will be available upon my arrival.

The nearest Target with a technician available tomorrow is an hour away in Altoona.

WEDNESDAY 4 p.m. I call my brother, who recently retired from his ownership of several uBreakiFix phone repair shops in the Midwest. We walk through the same scenario. No, I have no plastic case; no, there are no SIM tray and hole visible. He has more patience with me than tech support. I clean all edges of the phone with a damp cloth. No SIM tray appears. I email him photos of all edges of the phone. No SIM tray is visible to him either. He runs out of time—he needs to take his granddaughter to an event.

WEDNESDAY 5 p.m. I wash the edges again. I study the phone again under a bright light with a magnifying glass. I try the magnifying feature of my husband’s cell phone camera. No SIM tray appears.

THURSDAY 2 p.m. I hand my phone to the technician at the Ankeny Target store and explain my problem. She holds the phone, puts her manicured fingers on the narrow edge of the phone, and asks, “Do you mind?”

“Do I mind what?” I ask.

“Do you mind if I remove the plastic cover?”

“It has a plastic cover?!” I exclaim. I mutter to go ahead.

She deftly removes a thin plastic cover that encases all narrow edges of the phone. It is glued to the leather cover which I had forgotten had a plastic component.

She shows me the SIM tray, demonstrates how to open it, and replaces the plastic cover.

I thank her and slink out of the store.

THURSDAY 3 p.m. My husband asks me, “Was that a lesson in humility?” I look at him, puzzled, and he clarifies. “Does that help you a little with that pride problem you mentioned last Sunday?”

I clutch my cell phone in its plastic case. Head held high, I don’t deign to answer.

Adapted from Creative Aging by Carol Van Klompenburg, published 2023, available from Amazon and for Pella-area residents at Pella Books, the Curiosity Shop, or directly from Carol. Carol has an MA in theater arts and is available for reading performances of her writing on aging, moments in her gardens, memories, and other topics.