The Witchita Lineman (and Dusty D) is Still on the Line

Shortly after posting the recent, perhaps overly jocular, post about the confusion of calling plans in 1913, Dusty D's phone and Internet service abruptly died.

(ooo-WEEEE-ooooh!)

It took a certain Telephone and Telegraph* Company f o u r d a y s to send out anyone. This savior came today. One of the old-school group of aging guys who actually know how to fix stuff and keep the world working. He was great. When he hooked up a lineman's telephone to our outside box, I got to show him my prized antique lineman's telephone. Check it out; it's awesome:

It is I believe a felony for a private citizen to misuse this potent device to listen in on someone's phone. So if you see Dusty D biking in your neighborhood with this (heavy!) doodad clipped to my belt loop, it's not because I'm intent on sidling into your back yard...scrooching along the side of the house...pausing to mentally critique your gardening efforts...silently unscrewing the outside call-box...and clipping on my lineman's telephone to quietly listen to your most private conversations. Nosir!

...because like other sensible people you don't have a land line anymore. So I just wear it around town as historical bling. Rockin' it old school, with a 1950s lineman's telephone, oh yeah.

At any rate, I gave the lineman my best pot of tender leaf lettuce in gratitude--turns out he is a gardener, and told us a story about a squirrel stealing his prized sunflower. Dusty D is drifting off topic here, so I'll close and get right to posting Allie's diary and some other goodies that piled up in the in-box while Internet was down!

*Sheesh, you can't even SEND a telegram anymore; company name update-time perhaps?