Flying Tonight

If there's one thing guaranteed to keep us on our toes it's a series of disasters. As we all know, they come in threes. I'm two down and am keenly awaiting the third.

Last night was spent in A&E with my youngest. He should have been on a plane going to Paris, but seconds before we got in the car, his elder brother pulled him out of a hiding place by his arm. Too hard. I didn't realise what had happened, but once in the car he started to complain that it really hurt and he couldn't move it.

What to do? Time was of the essence here so I decided to tackle the problem at the airport. They must have procedures to deal with medical emergencies. People have all sorts of medical emergencies in public places - heart attacks, passing out, falling over, tripping up and breaking something, fight injuries... etc.

The airport did have procedures. I approached a woman who was chatting to a pal on the information desk. She eventually managed to drag herself away from her fascinating conversation to attend to us. I told her we needed a doctor/nurse/someone competent medically, so she said she'd have to call the Pompiers (oooh!).

Was hoping to travel in one of these...

Two strapping firemen strode up a short time later and in a cosy spot with a sofa started to examine my son's shoulder. Then a third came and I wondered if the whole brigade might come down and we could make a party of it!

They couldn't decide if the shoulder was dislocated or not and advised I take him to hospital for an X-ray. I called my ex-h who agreed that my youngest couldn't fly and had to be seen to properly. The head pompier then asked me to sign a discharge saying that I wouldn't be needing pompier transport. I hesitated. A ride in a red truck with a flashing light was a very attractive proposition, but sadly an abuse of resources so I signed on the dotted line.

For the second time in a week, my youngest didn't travel and I had to cancel his arrangements. Instead we spent three hours in A&E waiting and having a few X-rays. Ever pessimistic, I'd taken a book with me so I could read while waiting for the hypothetical plane to take off. Here it came in handy during the interminable hours of waiting for hypothetical doctors to turn up. My son meanwhile played Bubbles and Solitaire on my phone. He's not a reader, that one. Neither one is despite the obvious advantages such as passing the time while waiting for busy doctors. They're having none of it!

Eventually, and I mean eventually, the doc appeared and said there was no dislocation or fracture but the shoulder had to be immobilised in a sling. That was it. Won't that make travelling fun!

He's off again today, third time lucky, with his bro this time. I'm hoping and praying that they make it without further incident and leave me to enjoy the meagre remnants of my own Christmas plans.

Handy Mobiles

Things you never knew your mobile phone could do!

(the fifth one is for the US only)

There are a few things that can be done in times of grave emergencies. Your mobile phone can actually be a life saver or an emergency tool for survival.

FIRST
Emergency
The Emergency Number worldwide for mobiles is 112. If you find yourself out of the coverage area of your mobile; network and there is an emergency, dial 112 and the mobile will search any existing network to establish the emergency number for you, and interestingly this number 112 can be dialed even if the keypad is locked. Try it out.

SECOND
Have you locked your keys in the car?
Does your car have remote keyless entry? This may come in handy someday. Good reason to own a cell phone: if you lock your keys in the car and the spare keys are at home, call someone at home on their cell phone from your cell phone. Hold your cell phone about a foot from your car door and have the person at your home press the unlock button, holding it near the mobile phone on their end. Your car will unlock. Saves someone from having to drive your keys to you. Distance is no object. You could be hundreds of miles away, and if you can reach someone who has the other "remote" for your car, you can unlock the doors (or the boot). Not this editor's Note: It works fine! They tried it out and it unlocked their car over a cell phone!"

THIRD
Hidden Power
Imagine your cell battery is very low. To activate, press the keys *3370# Your cell will restart with this reserve and the instrument will show a 50% increase in battery. This reserve will get charged when you charge your cell next time.

FOURTH
How to disable a STOLEN mobile phone?
To check your mobile phone's serial number, key in the following digits on your phone:
* # 0 6 #
A 15 digit code will appear on the screen. This number is unique to your handset. Write it down and keep it somewhere safe. When your phone get stolen, you can phone your service provider and give them this code. They will then be able to block your handset so even if the thief changes the SIM card, your phone will be totally useless. You probably won't get your phone back, but at least you know that whoever stole it can't use/sell it either. If everybody did this, there would be no point in people stealing mobile phones.
And finally....

FIFTH
Free Directory Service for Cells
Cell phone companies are charging Americans $1.00 to $1.75 or more for 411 information calls when they don't have to. When you need to use the 411 information option, simply dial: (800) FREE 411, or (800) 373-3411 without incurring any charge at all. Maybe you should programme this into your mobile phone now.