Murphy's Law for the MilSpouse

FacebookXPinterestEmailEmailEmailShare

Murphy's Law basically holds that if you give something a chance to go wrong, it generally will.


As military spouses, we know a special kind of Murphy's Law that applies to us and our relationship with our cell phones:  You can carry your cell phone for days without it ringing, but forget it once and your loved one is sure to call.


Why does this happen to us?!  Doesn't Murphy realize he's messing with communication-starved men and women?! 


I'm sure I'm not alone in this telephonic phenomenon. 


I'll admit to forgetting my cell phone more than once while Hubs was deployed.  I'll admit to being late once or twice or even breaking the speed limit to take myself to wherever I needed to go to retrieve my phone. 


On at least a half dozen occasions, I accidentally left my phone in the car while I ran in the daycare to pick up my daughters only to return to my car to find I'd missed Hubs trying to reach me.  Four or five missed calls on my phone along with his chiding voice mail about how I must be having too much fun to answer and that he only had a second so he'd call me again another day.  My heart would sink when I would realize a momentary lapse in my normal cell phone vigilance meant I'd have to wait even longer to speak to my husband.


I nearly blinded myself slip-sliding out of the shower with shampoo running in my eyes every time he'd call while I was showering.  I woke up sleeping children to spring from the rocking chair to grab my ringing cell phone...I also woke same said children when I had to enter their room to gather up the phone I'd forgotten when I'd tucked them in earlier. 


I used to laugh when I'd say, "I'd forget my head if it weren't attached."  I realize now, that's so true, because as important as my cell phone was to me, if I didn't have it attached to me somehow, I definitely had a high likelihood of forgetting it.


The cell phone became so important to me that I would actually wake up in the middle of the night to answer when it wasn't actually ringing and then, on occasion, sleep through it when it did ring in the night.  I find I have done the same thing with my children--waking to calls from them that aren't actually there or sleeping through some kiddie cries that actually do occur.


I always balance my discussion of the cell phone by reminding myself how lucky I am to have it.  My grandmother had to deal with months of my grandfather being at sea during WWII with no word.  My mother had to wait for letters home from Vietnam.  I had the luxury of carrying around a phone that would ring no matter where I was...even if that meant it would happen when I wasn't actually with the phone.


I'm interested in hearing your cell phone stories.  What lengths have you gone to in keeping your phone with you?  Any particularly interesting/humorous/heart sinking cell phone stories you want to share?  I'm sure this is one area in which we share much in common.  Share it in comments.


Story Continues
SpouseBuzz

Military Spouse Videos

View more