By Walter Arnett

I recently decided that my cell phone had outlived it’s usefulness as a convenience and I needed to give it last rites and replace it. So, off to Verizon I went. The visit reminded me of my first car phone and how it came about.

In 1992, the Florida Edition of The HVAC Insider began and Jean and I moved to the Tampa Bay area. I began traveling the state immediately. On the first visit to the Miami area, not having any idea where I was, I stopped at a convenience store to use the phone in the parking lot to call my contact for directions to his place. It was a successful call and as I started back to the car, I noticed five young men coming toward me from different directions. I quickly jumped in and drove out of there, and they turned back in the way they had started from. This is not an accusation of any bad ideas they had, but right then I decided that a portable phone of my own was in order as a necessity.

Since that experience, I have not been without my phone. I have never wanted anything more than a way to speak to someone, so the “smart phone” is of no interest to me. I have been, and always will be very happy with a plain flip phone. With this new unit I have, I was able to hook it up to the system in my car, so hands-free talking is available again for me.

This spring season has already had an abundance of dealer meetings and trade shows, with more to come. I hope you have been able to take advantage of the ones in your area. They present a world of knowledge and opportunities for you and your company to progress in this great industry. We’ll talk again next month.