With all the cheesecake-making

I forgot about the pumpkin carving. Gee. That's the fun part of Halloween, right? Now to find a good pattern...
But at least I remembered to go online and verify my employment with my cellular phone provider, as I get a discount that way. Today was the deadline.

I went for a walk earlier

which is, of course, healthy and I'm glad I did, but it really kicked my butt and I wound up coming home, hydrating a bit, turning the fan on, and plopping onto the bed for 'a few minutes', and then fell asleep from about for four hours, which probably defeated the purpose of going in the first place.

Getting up, I took my nightly medicine (so glad my phone reminds me now with a little sound that is like a shaking pill bottle), made a salad to bring to work tomorrow, changed purses, and then sat down and put my pills into my container for the next week and figured out what needs to be refilled Thursday. Then I suddenly remembered my phone bill was due today. Now, unlike some bills, I have until midnight to pay on time, but it was almost midnight. I signed in online and there was a problem accessing the website. It signed me in, but kept saying there was a problem and to hit the back button, but that only gave a 'loading page' error. So I tried the backup of using my handset to pay, using the application for my carrier, and that was going great until I got to the expiration date for the credit card and the drop down box sat there and laughed at me and did absolutely nothing except get larger. No drop down, no keyboard coming up to type anything up, just bigger. So I went back and tried the website again and then, no doubt since it was after midnight, everything was working again. Grrrr.... Oh well, at least it's paid, even if it looks like it's a day late rather than mere minutes. It's my fault for not doing it before I laid down, but I really didn't expect to actually fall asleep, as I didn't feel tired so much as needing to cool down and chill for a few minutes. [Postscript: If you've read this blog for any length of time, you know this last statement is ludicrous. I was obviously lying to myself, as any time I go horizontal I pretty much fall asleep. So let me retract that. Apparently when the endorphins gave out, I crashed, even though I didn't 'feel tired' prior to that. I should have given a bit of thought to that before I wrote. Sorry about that.]

I actually don't want an iPhone; I'm an Android gal

but...this will make my phone carrier stronger in the market, and there's interesting changes coming concerning plans. It looked for awhile that T-Mobile was faltering. Getting the iPhone should help.

T-Mobile Finally Getting Apple iPhone in 2013

What I found interesting in the article for 2013:

Legere said that T-Mobile will be eliminating subsidies to customers in 2013, making users buy their phones at full price and without a contract. Currently most U.S. carriers offer phones with a subsidy, paying for part of the phone but locking customers into a contract with monthly data and talk fees. For instance, today most smartphones cost around $199 with a subsidy, though their retail prices are a lot higher -- say, around $600. With monthly bills of around $50, carriers are able to make the money back.

T-Mobile will offer cheaper data plans or value plans, and also monthly plans for paying off the cost of the phone. It will also allow customers to upgrade phones when they want. Legere mentioned offering the iPhone for $99 and then allowing customers to pay off the rest in monthly increments. Currently, T-Mobile offers unlimited 4G data plans for considerably less than its larger competitors do.

There is so much I don't know about wireless services

Brandon texted me and told me that sometimes if there's no service in an area, you'll pick up on another carrier's tower. I guess that's what they mean by roaming. So that may be why AT&T showed up on my phone. :)

That's interesting

Earlier, when I looked at the 'notifications' on my phone, instead of saying T-Mobile, it said AT&T. I wasn't aware the acquisition of T-Mobile by AT&T had been officially approved, and I can't find anything stating that. It was expected to take months to get approval, and several parties are (rightly, in my opinion) opposing it. Now the label is back to T-Mobile. Hmmmm.

I agree with the objections wholeheartedly, as a T-Mobile subscriber

AT&T Files to Buy T-Mobile Amid Objections

Consumer group and net neutrality backer Free Press also came out blazing.

“No matter how many high-priced lobbying firms AT&T hires, it won’t be able to fool Americans into thinking the reconstitution of the Ma Bell monopoly is a good thing,” Free Press Research Director S. Derek Turner said in a written statement. “Make no mistake, this deal is about eliminating a competitor and nothing more. AT&T has chosen the marketing slogan ‘Mobilize Everything’ to sell this competition-killing deal, but it’s clear their real goal is to ‘Monopolize Everything.’”

The deal would also give AT&T a virtual monopoly over GSM-based phones in the United States, as T-Mobile is the only other national carrier to use that technology.

T-Mobile has long been known for being innovative and having good customer service; while AT&T’s customer service ranks lowest among the big carriers and the company is also locking down its Android devices.

The FCC and the Justice Department will both have to approve the deal before the purchase can be finalized, and citizens and outside groups can file statements in support or opposition to the deal.

I want my phone company to stay T-Mobile. In 12 years I've had one outage. In all that time, I've had three dropped calls, all in the belly of the hospital where I work. I don't think ATT&T has that good of a record, and I don't like this acquisition. As someone who is now locked into a contract for two years, I think I have a right to voice my objections. Where do I file?