You Give Me Fever

ETA: This post was drafted on May 31st but I never finished it and even forgot completely about it *gasp*. Since I'm going to come back on this soon, you can catch up on the history of this "situation". Have fun and watch out for the next installment! Sorry for the spelling or other errors. I'm giving it to you raw, LOL!

This month of may has been really hot. And I'm not talking about the weather or the political stuff. Oh, no! nothing so futile.

I'm talking about the cell phone wars. You read me, the streets of this city are all atwitter because there's a new kid on the playground and he doesn't play nice.

But before we get to that, I've got to take you waaay back, all the way to 1999, the year of the cellular advent.

Sure, before that there was the CB of the mid-eighties. How could I forget? I couldn't watch the Disney Channel in peace because the signal scrambled everytime a kid wanted to ask his mother if he could have his dessert. And there was a first cell company but only the lucky few, as far as I can tell, had them and they were HUGE.

Then, sometime during 1999, all the landline phones of the national company started going out of order. I recall quite clearly wondering how so many of my friends and family could have their phones busted when none of them lived in the same neighborhood. Lo and behold, Cell Co. No 1 comes out and everyone rushes to get one. I didn't. Not only because the prices seemed a little much but I thought it was a bourgeois fad.

Cell Co. 2 pops up. CC#1 isn't happy. They don't talk for about a month and then kiss and make up. I actually got my first cell phone because my office got a deal with CC#2 and I could pay it off each month.

Both hiked they prices. People grumbled but put up with it.
You see, that's how it works here: since almost everything is a monopoly (blatant or not), most people settle for shutting up and living with the situation as best they can. That is, until May 1st...

Fever when you kiss me...

After months and months of teasing, and enticing, and suggestive comehither stares, Cell Co.#3 finally launched its services. And then all hell broke loose. For a solid two weeks, all people could talk about was this new kid, bulldozing into town.

And believe me, no pussyfooting at all.

The number of stores alone had to make you take notice. And their colors: red and white. I think a blind man's retina would be seered by CC#3's trail of fire across this city. Everywhere you turn, a red store.

They have t-shirts, caps, lanyards, bracelets. It's like a giant tomato exploded on our heads over night.

Fever when you hold me tight...

And when word got out that CC#2 didn't want to talk to CC#3, the new kid took off the gloves and put out an ad naming CC#2 and offering free phones for all who wanted to defect from CC#2.

For two weeks straight, lines of people, from before dawn, in front of each and every store. And believe me, there are plenty of stores to choose from. I counted on the list they posted in the papers, 33 stores between my house and my office.

Now, all through this battle, CC#1 had been very quiet.